On My Honor: Boy Scouts and the Making of American YouthIn a timely contribution to current debates over the psychology of boys and the construction of their social lives, On My Honor explores the folk customs of adolescent males in the Boy Scouts of America during a summer encampment in California's Sierra Nevada. Drawing on more than twenty years of research and extensive visits and interviews with members of the troop, Mechling uncovers the key rituals and play events through which the Boy Scouts shapes boys into men. He describes the campfire songs, initiation rites, games, and activities that are used to mold the Scouts into responsible adults. The themes of honor and character alternate in this new study as we witness troop leaders offering examples in structure, discipline, and guidance, and teaching scouts the difficult balance between freedom and self-control. What results is a probing look into the inner lives of boys in our culture and their rocky transition into manhood. On My Honor provides a provocative, sometimes shocking glimpse into the sexual awakening and moral development of young men coming to grips with their nascent desires, their innate aggressions, their inclination toward peer pressure and violence, and their social acculturation. On My Honor ultimately shows how the Boy Scouts of America continues to edify and mentor young men against the backdrop of controversies over freedom of religious expression, homosexuality, and the proposed inclusion of female members. While the organization's bureaucracy has taken an unyielding stance against gay men and atheists, real live Scouts are often more open to plurality than we might assume. In their embrace of tolerance, acceptance, and understanding, troop leaders at the local level have the power to shape boys into emotionally mature men. |
Contents
D AY 1 Sunday | 1 |
The Problem of God in the Boy Scouts | 35 |
D AY 2 Monday | 49 |
D AY 3 Tuesday | 67 |
D AY 4 Wednesday | 89 |
D AY 5 Thursday | 105 |
D AY 6 Friday | 117 |
D AY S 7 8 Saturday Sunday | 135 |
E X C U R S U S The Two Bodies at a Boy Scout Camp | 187 |
E X C U R S U S The Problem of Gays and Girls in the Boy Scouts | 207 |
D AY 1 1 Wednesday | 237 |
D AY 1 2 Thursday | 253 |
T H E F I N A L W E E K E N D | 265 |
Epilogue | 277 |
Methodology Appendix | 285 |
Notes | 289 |
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Common terms and phrases
Aaron adolescent adult alumni American asked began body Boy Scout camp Boy Scout Handbook boy's Brian Sutton-Smith called campers canoe Capture the Flag contest created culture Eagle Scout Ernest Thompson Seton event everyday false clue father feminine Folklore fuck Girl Scouts Handbook for Boys heterosexual hike Hillcourt homophobia homosexuality honor Insane Day Jeff joke kids KYBO lake leadership male masculinity masturbation means misogyny moral national office neckerchief Nugget Auction organization Patrol Leader performance Pete Pete's play frame playfight Poison Pit Press religious ritual rock role rules Scout experience Scout Law Scout Oath Scout troop Scoutmaster Scouts of America Seniors Seton sexual skills skit slide social song sort Staff Area Staff campfire strategy symbolic talk things Todd Tommy traditional Treasure Hunt Troop 49 troop campfire turned Usonia verse William Hillcourt women York zonk
Popular passages
Page xix - On my honor I will do my best "To do my duty to God and my country "and to obey the Scout Law; 'To help other people at all times; 'To keep myself physically strong, "mentally awake, and morally straight.
Page xix - A Scout is Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean and Reverent".