PhotoEssay_ZTuan by Zoe Tuan

Sink #1

ztuan002 — 2024-05-15 22:40:02 UTC

In Connell's 1995 The Social Organization of Masculinity, Connell's definition of masculinity is not a trait, but rather a social construct and he expands on how society forms this ideal of masculinity through media, and how it differentiates between cultures. The two sinks belong to two of my friends who are a heterosexul, Asian American males. I chose to take a picture of their sink because in my personal definition of masculine, they are very masculine. They hate anything that is the least bit "girly" and feminine, including the mere color of pink. Therefore, I choose to display their sinks first. At first glance, there's not much you can really pinpoint on this sink- it is just a normal, average sink. However, in many movies where there is a bathroom scene and the place belongs to a man, it is usually very empty and really only contains a toothbrush, cup, and other miscellaneous things. The red solo cups truly piece things together that this is a man's sink. This is because Asian men are usually depicted in media as "cheap", trying to use the next best thing without having to spend too much money. The picture fits Connell's definition of masculinity as it differs between culture and how my friend feeds into the social construct of masculinity.

Sink #3

ztuan002 — 2024-05-15 22:40:02 UTC

This sink compared to sink #1 and #2, is very bland. It has nothing other than soap and a cute pot of lavenders. The person who owns this sink is another male friend, however, he is less masculine than the owners of sink #1 and #2. He is not as shy about being a little bit "feminine" and does not spend too much time protecting his masculinity. He works out for the simple pleasure of it rather than gaining muscle to look more "manly". He would also like more "girly" activities to do with me and my other girl friends, whereas my friends who own the previous two sinks do not like to go out with me and my girl friends if it is just us with no other guys around, in fear that they would look like the "gay best friend" if they were hanging out with all girls with no other guys. In Pascoe's Dude, You're a Fag, the definition for the term "fag" is an unmasculine man. My friend who owns this sink has been called one before. He does not identify as gay, nor do I think he really presents himself as "unmasculine", but it affected him. My friend brings a lot of people over to his place, so he would often have guests who uses his bathroom (it is the only bathroom that belongs to him in the house), so he decorated it like this. Simple and plain to avoid "oh, your bathroom is so girly" comments. When taking this picture, I asked him if he could decorate it differently, would he? He answered yes, and that he would like to crowd his sink with his favorite skincare products but since skincare is considered "feminine", he keeps it in the cabinets underneath. The most he could do is put the lavender in the bathroom that was gifted by his roommate.

Sink #4

ztuan002 — 2024-05-15 22:40:02 UTC

This sink belongs to a heterosexual female friend of mine. I wanted to add this picture to provide some contrast between a female versus male sink. This sink has some more skincare and selfcare products on the countertop, already different from the other previous three sinks. Another item that stands out to me is the pink water cup, which may suggest something feminine that none of the males above have on their sink. It is not cheap, red solo cup but rather a specially bought cup just for rinsing the mouth of toothpaste. The big difference between the two sinks is really just the selfcare items presented on their sink. It makes it seem like taking care of oneself is a "feminine" thing to do, which I feel like is what many males feel. Media does not properly present males doing proper skincare or putting on lotion after showering, only females. The most selfcare for males I have seen on media is shaving. It should be important for males to feel that selfcare is normal and that they should not feel "girly" or "gay" just because they want to have good skin or smell nice.

Sink #5

ztuan002 — 2024-05-15 22:40:02 UTC

Steering a bit away from the differences between a "masculine" sink versus an "unmasculine" sink, I will relate this sink to the topic covered in class; Asian American Woman Struggles with Beauty Standards. Clearly, this sink is covered in various makeup products. There is a variety of different makeup brands in here, but I want to point out that there are a mix of American beauty brands and Asian beauty brands on this counter. This is my sink. As an Asian American girl who grew up in a predominantly white neighborhood, I would try every American makeup brand to try and look like the other girls in my class. Of course, it does not work, but I was young and at the time, Asian culture was not as popular as it is now and I could not accept that I was not one of the pretty white girls in the class. I remember spending so much money on different makeup products in hopes that I would find one that would magically change my Asian features. Now that Asian culture, especially Korean culture, is more popular nowadays and is becoming the trend in a lot of social media platforms, their makeup has also started trending. I began to experiment, starting to purchase Asian brands that are made specifically for Asians, rather than the American brands that mostly cater to the American beauty standard that I do not fit in. At one point in time, I only really used these Asian brands because I really enjoyed the way the products looked and worked on me, and it felt comforting to finally find a makeup look that actually fit my Asian features. The struggle of fitting into American beauty standards with Asian features was detrimental to my mental health and I cried countless times, even debating on double eyelid surgery at my teenage years just to somewhat look a bit more "American". I think that if Asian culture had not become so popular that it is now, I would probably still struggle with the way I look.

SINKS by Zoe Tuan

ztuan002 — 2024-05-15 22:40:54 UTC

Sink #2

ztuan002 — 2024-05-15 23:01:16 UTC

Apart from sink #1, this sink does have a little bit more skincare products (two more). The owner of this sink expressed to me that he was actually tempted to put the skincare products into the cabinets underneath because he was a little bit embarrassed. I was a bit appalled, because why was he ashamed about skincare, taking care of himself? I probably own three times more of skincare products than he does, and he shrugged it off and said, "it's kind of gay for me to do skincare." I had taken multiple other of my friends sink to give me a variety of choices to choose from to put into this essay, but his words convinced me that I had to use his sink. I told him he should not have that view point and that taking care of himself is not gay, many other guys do it, but they are just not as open about it because they all think the same thing. I believe that masculine pride is big factor that is holding them back, even to the point that he wanted to hide his skincare products.