War has been a pillar of human civilization since its inception thousands of years ago, and throughout this long and colorful history, warriors were almost exclusively men. By repeatedly assuming the fundamentally aggressive and violent role of the soldier, Man gradually came to define himself through these violent experiences. Although modern American society regulates the experiences associated with engagement in war to a select group of individuals, leaving the majority of the American public emotionally and personally distant from war, mainstream American masculinity still relies heavily on typically male experience of war. In modern American society, masculinity is still defined and expressed by analogy with the behavior and experiences of men at war; However, such simplistic masculinity cannot capture the depth of human experience experienced by a modern man. Whether engaging in trench warfare in Europe or fighting in the jungles of Vietnam, a soldier must learn to cope with the incredible mental stress brought on by the ever-present threat of a grisly death. The physical stress induced by poor nutrition, a difficult and hostile environment, and the cumulative physical effect of emotional trauma only makes a trying situation even more trying. It is from this violently stressful environment that the coping mechanisms that characterize wartime masculinity emerge. A natural response to such a violent environment is to simply behave in a way that shows no weakness. If the soldier shows no signs of weakness, it is much easier for him to convince himself that he can survive because of his strength. By asserting his control over himself by hiding all his weaknesses, middle of paper ......y and war still abound; However, these analogies cannot account for the full masculinity of the modern man because they do not allow for the formation of intimate personal relationships, such as those between husband and wife, which are central to ordinary civil life. Works Cited Kriegel, Leonard. “Take it.” Reconstructing Gender: A Multicultural Anthology. Ed. Estelle Disch. New York: McGraw Hill, 2006. 194-196. Messner, Michael A. “Childhood, organized sports and the construction of masculinities”. Reconstructing Gender: A Multicultural Anthology. Ed. Estelle Disch. New York: McGraw Hill, 2006. 120-137. O'Brien, Tim. The things they carried. New York: Broadway Books, 1990. Petrie, Phil W. "Real Men Don't Cry...and Other 'Uncool' Myths." Reconstructing Gender: A Multicultural Anthology. Ed. Estelle Disch. New York: McGraw Hill, 2006. 221-226.