A Man among Other Men: The Crisis of Black Masculinity in Racial Capitalism

A Man among Other Men is a book that explores the competing constructions of modern manhood in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, and how French colonial legacies and media tropes of Blackness act as powerful axes, rooting masculine identity and value within labor, consumerism, and commodification. It demonstrates how men's subjectivities are formed in dialectical tension by and through hegemonic ideologies of race and patriarchy, and provides a theoretically innovative, historically grounded, and empirically rich account of Black masculinity that illuminates the sustained power of imaginaries even as capitalism affords a deficit of material opportunities.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 306 pages
Publication date: 23 May 2022
Publisher: Cornell University Press

A Man among Other Men is a groundbreaking book that has received numerous prestigious awards and recognitions. It was awarded the Lee Ann Fujii Book Award, the Paul Sweezy Outstanding Book Award, the ISA Global Development Studies Best Book, the ISA John Ruggie Annual Best Book Award, and the Society for the Study of Social Problems Global Division Book Award.

The book explores the complex and multifaceted constructions of modern manhood in the West African metropolis of Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. Author Jordanna Matlon delves into the histories, representational repertoires, and performative identities of men in Abidjan and across the Black Atlantic. Through a broad chronological and transatlantic scope, Matlon demonstrates how French colonial legacies and media tropes of Blackness act as powerful axes, rooting masculine identity and value within labor, consumerism, and commodification.

The book offers a rich and nuanced account of Black masculinity that challenges prevailing notions and offers a fresh perspective. Matlon demonstrates how men's subjectivities are formed in dialectical tension by and through hegemonic ideologies of race and patriarchy. By conducting a deep ethnography of the livelihoods and lifestyles of men in Abidjan's informal economy, Matlon showcases how men's experiences are shaped by the interplay between dominant ideologies and their material realities.

A Man among Other Men provides a theoretically innovative, historically grounded, and empirically rich account of Black masculinity. It illuminates the sustained power of imaginaries even as capitalism affords a deficit of material opportunities. The book reveals a story of Black abjection set against the anticipation of male privilege, a story of the long crisis of Black masculinity in racial capitalism.

The book has garnered honorable mentions from prestigious organizations such as the African Studies Association Best Book Prize, the American Anthropological Association Society for the Anthropology of Work Best Book, and the American Sociological Association (Sociology of Development Section; Race, Gender, and Class Section; and Sociology of Sex and Gende).

In conclusion, A Man among Other Men is a must-read for scholars, researchers, and anyone interested in understanding the complexities of Black masculinity and its relationship to power, identity, and society. It is a groundbreaking work that has made significant contributions to the field of Black Studies and beyond.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781501762932