As early as 1977, Natalie Davis, writing about the epistemological break attributable to the sudden emergence of “gender” in history, argued that “we should take an interest in the history of men as well as the history of women, and not work only on the oppressed gender”. However, this call has largely gone unheeded, no doubt because most historians of gender focussed first on women. The now-flourishing school of so-called ‘Gender History’, has unconsciously tended to consider only the feminine side and point of view. Although there has been a certain amount of research on e.g. citizenship, paternity, masculine homosexuality and on the connection between barracks, war, and virility, nevertheless many ‘masculine’ topics still remain historiographical blindspots, and synthesis is lacking. The aim of the conference on the history of men and masculinities therefore is to further develop this new field of research, by looking through the historian’s distanced eye at what can sometimes seem too obvious and therefore escapes analysis. Researchers who have started studying this field in relative isolation can therefore come together to compare experiences. The choice of history in the plural – ‘masculinities’ – refers to the diversity of situations with which men are confronted, both in time and space. This conference is also meant to be both transperiodic and international. It is international because of its scientific council, the choice of its participants and, hopefully, an audience made up of both proven historians, and Doctoral and Master’s students. It is hoped that it will function as an inaugural conference that will be followed by further more specialized conferences on narrower periods, places or themes. Finally, it is anticipated that its contributions and conclusions will be presented in the form of an editorial project, a history of men and masculinities, that will prolong the former adventure of L’histoire des femmes en Occident (The history of women in the West).

The conference will be held on June 18-20, 2009 at the Ecole normale supérieure Lettres et sciences humaines in Lyons. There will be five plenary sessions, organized on the following topics:

 “Men, masculinities, virilities. Words, concepts, usages”,
 “Signs and markers”. These include voice, stature and posture, as well as clothes, the carrying of weapons, parliamentary and rhetorical art, etc.
 “Proving and Testing masculinity” Two sessions will be devoted to this key topic, which covers the lifespan from youth to old age, since at each stage of life, men must prove, again and again, their masculinity through various tests: professional, military, sports, sexual (initiation, impotence), etc.
 “Hierarchies of men and masculinities” This topic must also include failures, insubordination, and the subversion of prescribed roles.