ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book explores the idea of plurality that is right at the centre of the hetero-normative definition of masculinity. Companionship-based masculinities are the corollary of what family historians such as Ariès or Shorter called the making of the modern family, a process in which the domestication of men had a key part. The book explores the rapid pace of change in gender relations, Portugal offers, quite clearly, a challenging profile. It also describes that empirical data used, is drawn from two qualitative investigations, both of which aim at understanding the different scenarios of men's practices, discourses and identities. The book intends to connect the scholarship on men and masculinities with feminist theorizations of gender. It also explores the ways in which men and women relate to cultural aspects of gender in different Western societies, a comparison of the US and the European countries.
