A Critical, Rhetorical Analysis of Man Therapy

Abstract

To address high numbers of suicides by men in America, the mental health promotion campaign Man Therapy attempts to destigmatize mental health as staunchly opposed to masculinity through overtly humorous constructions of therapy designed for hegemonically masculine men. Through a critical analysis of the campaign, including the interactive website, modeled as the fictitious office of Dr. Rich Mahogany, this project addresses the influences of humor within the confines of hegemonic masculinity, mental health, and suicide. The goal of the analysis is to better understand, through a critical deconstruction, the ways in which Man Therapy successfully combats stigma in men’s mental health, while at the same time, perhaps, reifying hegemonic discourses that have the potential to abject parts of the target audience.