Boyz N the Hood

In the movie “Boyz in the Hood,” many different types of masculinities are portrayed. The main character, Tre, is seen as the man with morals. He goes to college, does not get into fights, and even respects his girlfriend’s wishes not to have sex until she is ready. He grew up with a strong father figure, illustrating that men need a disciplinary father to allow them to grow into good-willed, successful men, which is an important theme of the film. Tre’s friends Doughboy and Ricky did not have a father throughout their childhoods, and the movie shows how this truly affected the way their lives progressed. Ricky had goals to go to college and play football, but he still somehow lost these dreams in the midst of getting his girlfriend pregnant, raising a child, and then getting into so much violence that he is shot and killed at the end. Finally, Doughboy shows the most extreme type of dangerous masculinity. When he is a young boy, he steals and gets sent to juvenile hall and is in and out of prison for seven years after that. He has so much rage and is always drinking and getting into fights. After Ricky is killed, Doughboy takes revenge and kills the men who murdered his brother, but is then killed himself two weeks later. He is shown as the opposite of Tre because Tre’s father tells him not to take revenge and Tre makes the right decision, while Doughboy’s violence gets the best of him and only makes the situation worse. Race is also important in the film because a lot of it has to do with the gangs and the area the characters live in, which is predominantly African-American. The violence involved with the race and groups of dominant males shows the issues that arise within the ethnic group. Also, race is important because many African American fathers leave their children and that is a main theme of the film. Women do not play a very important role in the film, but when they are shown it is just to prove that a father figure is needed to create a successful man. At first Tre’s mother is dominant and shows Tre strong morals, but then gives her son to his father feeling that he could do a better job while she was in school. Also the film shows the differences of males and females because Tre’s girlfriend is scared of violence and is taught not to be around boys when she is young. This film strongly portrays the violence in masculinity, but also juxtaposes that image with one of success and morals.