Oranges Men and Masculinity Quotes

This seems like a pretty straightforward description, but if we look closely we can see some alpha-male action at work. It's all in the word choice. The speaker could have said, "I touched her shoulder and we walked down the street together." Instead, he went with "led / Her down the street." It's that idea of leading, of taking charge, that makes this an example of the traditionally male need to take control.

This is basically the twelve-year-old version of "Can I buy you a drink?" or "Dinner is on me." It's another example of that masculine need to provide and take control—it just happens to take place in the candy aisle rather than in a swanky restaurant.

Here again, the word choice speaks volumes. Instead of "I held her hand," the speaker goes with the more possessive-aggressive "I took my girl's hand." Previously in the poem, the girl was referred to with pronouns like "she" and "her." Now she is "his." In addition to that word "my," we also have the word "mine." The girl seems a little like a prized possession in this context, or something to be captured and "released" at the speaker's will. The whole idea of capturing and possessing in terms of relationships reflects some serious old-school ideas about the masculine mind-set.