Damned If They Do, Damned If They Don't

Abstract

This article documents the authors' efforts to listen to Nicaraguan men and to explore with them the foundations of their sexual behavior and masculinities. In 1999 and 2000, the authors conducted focus groups involving ninety men from the Pacific side of Nicaragua. From analysis of the text of these interviews, five discourses were identified: a traditional patriarchal discourse ( machismo), a Catholic discourse, a Western progressive (liberal feminist) discourse, a pro-feminist discourse, and a medical discourse. The authors argue that these discourses construct a series of tensions within Nicaraguan masculinities that greatly affect Nicaraguan men's ability to play a role in change and suggest strategies through which the men may be helped to resolve these tensions and therefore play an active role in the social and political changes that are profoundly affecting the positions of both women and men in Nicaraguan society.