Rather than a visible 'crisis,' male formlessness reflects the absence of shared rites, stakes, and elders who keep score. The argument implies that without catalyzing institutions—rituals, teams, service—male development stagnates in a docile, suspended state.
— This reframes male decline as an institutional design problem, shifting debate toward rebuilding structured initiation and communal challenge.
Richard Reeves
2025.10.10
78% relevant
Reeves argues many young men feel 'lost' and unsure of their role—'up for grabs'—which aligns with the claim that male formlessness reflects a lack of shared rites and institutions that structure identity and purpose.
Matthew Gasda
2025.08.20
100% relevant
The piece says 'masculinity is desperate for a crisis' and locates its 'unexpressed, omnipresent' state in the loss of communal rites and elder oversight, with team sports as a residual fragment.
Johann Kurtz
2025.08.07
70% relevant
Both argue male development requires structured challenge and socially sanctioned outlets; this article proposes explicitly teaching boys controlled aggression and critiques school policies that punish any aggressive expression, aligning with calls for institutions that catalyze male formation.
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