So I guess Bill Bennett wrote a book on the diminishment of the American male, and he seems to make a lot of political points with which I do not agree but I certainly have lots of thoughts on what it means to be an adult man in America, and how men who are my age are different from their fathers and grandfathers. And I think a lot about the portrayal of manhood in popular media and how few examples there are of good men and good fathers in modern entertainment. Sure, the obvious explanation for the lack of positive images is the difficulty in making decency entertaining in comparison to bumbling oafishness, childishness, selfishness, womanizing, and abusiveness. And in all honesty, there are positive images you can find without looking all that hard. I’m making a little list, and I’d invite you to add to it. The factors I’m taking into account include things like dignity, responsibility, self-control, wisdom, intelligence, openness, honesty, and communication. I will need to expand and explain the factors at some point Here’s what I have:

Andy Taylor
Ward Cleaver
Coach Eric Taylor
The Avett Brothers
Michael Bluth
Atticus Finch
A good amount of Jimmy Stewart characters
Cliff Huxtable