Boys in the hood

In the film Boys in the Hood, Tre moves in with his father so that he learns how to “be a man.” The masculine qualities that Tre’s father values as “manly” are doing chores around the house, because his father only has to clothe, feed, and shelter him, Tre must take responsibility for everything else. His father hopes that this will instill a sense of responsibility in Tre. To be masculine is to be muscular, strong, able and to interact with other men and do “manly” activities such as fishing and mowing the lawn. While Tre’s father attempts to teach Tre to be responsible and educated, he also makes it clear that being able to protect your family is also very important. His father doesn’t hesitate to shoot an intruder in order to protect himself and his son. Living in the “dangerous” neighborhood that they did, there was a social sense of masculinity portrayed to Tre. His friends would talk back and act “tough” like they would fight anyone. In Tre’s neighborhood it was important to be “tough,” it was also very dangerous, as evident by the tragic deaths of many people due to pride. It was difficult for Tre to find and nice middle ground between being tough and being safe, being tough was dangerous and meant subjecting yourself to dangers such as gang fights and drive-bys.
In the film, everyone who lived in the neighborhood was primarily African American, this contributes a racial influence of masculine values. It is evident in the film that the “norm” was to either get a girl pregnant, become a bum at your mom’s house or a drug dealer, or drug addict, and to constantly try to get a lot of “ass.” While this is a stereotypical depiction of African Americans, it is also an accurate description of the “ghetto” or low income areas, where crime is high and justice low. Being born into this area breads the same characteristics in the young boys and girls because they learn how to be “men” socially in their community, and when your community is filled with violence and having to be “tough” you will likely mold to this form. Tre’s father makes a point about how the “blacks keep killing the black” and that is what the White people want, for all of them to kill themselves. He says that by perpetuating the violence and low value on education they are only hurting themselves.
Women in the film are portrayed as submissive backdrops to the men. They certainly aren’t the “active agents” in the film, they are the props and “property” to be had and knocked up. There are a few strong women, such as Tre’s mother, that portray advancement, but most of the women in the film are “huchies,” dressed in revealing clothing and getting pregnant at young ages. One woman is an ice addict who offers a blow job to any guy with drugs, while her baby roams the streets unsupervised. Tre’s mother, as well has his love interest seem to be “outsiders-within,” because Tre’s mother got out of the ghetto by becoming educated and successful, and his girlfriend is adamant about not getting pregnant and waiting till after she finishes college to get married.
Overall the film depicts a common community in America and depicts the gender roles present in this community and how it differs from higher income families/areas.