Ramdeo, Prashna2011-03-302011-03-302011-03-30http://hdl.handle.net/10539/9279Gender studies in South Africa, especially the understanding of masculinity, is still in its infancy and as such paucity in literature and qualitative studies is evident. This study was aimed at exploring how male and female university students talked about the emergence of the ‘metrosexual’ male and the changes, if any, that masculinity has undergone. The rationale of this study is to therefore contribute to the growing understanding of the ‘metrosexual’ male and to try and bridge the gap between theoretical understandings of masculinity and the lived experiences of the South African population. The sample for this study consisted of eight University of Witwatersrand undergraduate students (four male and four female). . The research process involved each participant undergoing a semi structured interview, after which their talk around the ‘metrosexual’ male was analysed using discourse analysis. The researcher was interested in learning how the participants talked about current masculinity, the ‘metrosexual’ male, factors that are responsible for the emergence of the ‘metrosexual’ male and finally the suggestion that masculinity is in crisis. The data suggests that whilst the ‘metrosexual’ is understood as being another form of masculinity, the suggestion of a crisis is questionable, as perhaps the so called crisis is created through people’s discourses as a means of repositioning masculinity and maintaining its inherent dominance. The ‘metrosexual’ male was therefore seen as a positioning of masculinity that implies freedom to explore without disrupting the hegemonic qualities of masculinity.enGender studiesMasculinitySouth AfricaMetrosexual maleCrisisDiscourse analysisThesis