Abstract
In this article we use men’s changing investments in desired material objects as a window into the changing moralities underpinning masculinities in the wake of Angola’s civil war. Drawing on participant observation and life history interviews with middle-aged men working in informal commerce in the city of Huambo, we examine the roles of land, houses, and cars in the construction of different styles of masculinity. We argue that analyzing differences among men’s investments in these objects provides useful insights into how men construct multireferential masculinities in a contested postcolonial, postwar context in which questions of gendered cultural hegemony are contentious and complex. These masculinities map onto competing, yet overlapping, sets of moral values that rework preexisting gendered cultural forms and practices to cope with the social and economic consequences of the war and to express aspirations for disparate modernities.
Highlights
In this article we use men’s changing investments in desired material objects as a window into the changing moralities underpinning masculinities in the wake of Angola’s civil war
Displacement from rural birthplaces during the war and resettlement in informal urban housing shaped the masculinities of the middle-aged men working in informal commerce with whom we worked during this research
We identify two signature styles from the “full house” of styles (Gould 1996, cited in Ferguson 1999, p. 20), which reveal some of the gendered social fissures the war produced: the modern, churchgoing, man in a companionate marriage; and the playful, consumerist, heavy-drinking womanizer
Summary
In this article we use men’s changing investments in desired material objects as a window into the changing moralities underpinning masculinities in the wake of Angola’s civil war. We argue that analyzing differences among men’s investments in these objects provides useful insights into how men construct multireferential masculinities in a contested postcolonial, postwar context in which questions of gendered cultural hegemony are contentious and complex These masculinities map onto competing, yet overlapping, sets of moral values that rework preexisting gendered cultural forms and practices to cope with the social and economic consequences of the war and to express aspirations for disparate modernities. The contrast between Angola’s party-elite masculinity of conspicuous consumption and the options available to most men was striking, and they felt it deeply In response to this tension, the men in this study performed a number of different, overlapping, multireferential, and often morally contentious masculinities (Aboim 2009). Men pursue masculine life projects in this transforming environment, informed both by prewar cultural scripts and by their changing circumstances
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
