‘The boys’ present… Hegemonic masculinity: a performance of multiple acts

Abstract

This article explores the performance of masculinity(ies) within the classroom site. Drawing upon research conducted in two co‐educational secondary classrooms, it examines the ways in which two groups of boys took up positions of dominance within their respective classrooms and, more specifically, focuses upon the ways in which they came to construct themselves, and perform, as embodied masculine subjects. In doing so, it examines the gendered and sexualized discursive knowledges and practices mobilized by these boys. Furthermore, it illustrates the ways in which these performances are constituted by, and constitutive of, versions of hegemonic masculinity while demonstrating the range of ways of ‘doing’ hegemonic masculinity—the various performance techniques available to do this ‘work’. The article also examines how these boys' performances served to position their peers within the classroom and, furthermore, explores their intra‐group interactions and the ways in which they came to position each other.