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Shooting the Isolation and Marginality of Masculinities in Iranian Cinema

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 2022

Nacim Pak-Shiraz
Nacim Pak-Shiraz*
Affiliation:
Persian and Film Studies at the University of Edinburgh
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Abstract

This article examines the isolation and marginality of Iranian men living in contemporary Iran with a focus on three post-2005 films. As a patriarchal society, Iran has been the subject of many studies on the subjugation and marginality of women. This study demonstrates how recent Iranian films have skillfully employed the cinematic language to narrate men’s stories of alienation and despair. These filmic constructions provide a valuable and complex insight into masculine identities, challenging perceptions of the essentialized image of the Middle Eastern male. By employing Connell’s hierarchy of masculinities, the article demonstrates the position of marginalized men in relation to the dominant ideals of masculinity and the influence of these discourses on the lives of such men. The films discussed here do not perpetuate the construction of the ‘true’ gender, but instead challenge ideas of heroism, manliness and patriarchy.

Type
Articles
Information
Iranian Studies , Volume 50 , Issue 6: Visualizing Iran: From Antiquity to the Present , November 2017 , pp. 945 - 967
Copyright
Copyright © Association For Iranian Studies, Inc 2017

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Footnotes

This work was supported by the Center for the Advanced Study of the Arab World at the University of Edinburgh. The research for this article was presented at the Constructing Masculinities Symposium at the University of Edinburgh as part of the author’s research network program on Male Bodies and Masculinities in the Middle East.

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