Citadel: history, architecture, and strategic significance

¶ … presence of women in the Citadel has provided the men at the school with an opportunity to reflect on their attitudes toward masculinity and gender equality. In her article, "The Naked Citadel," Susan Faludi describes the intense and negative reaction of Citadel Cadets to the enrollment of women in the institution. It is through the presence of women in the Citadel that the men of the institution have an opportunity to begin to understand that the Citadel has provided them with an environment free of many of the larger societies expectations of masculinity. As such, the presence of women in the Citadel reveals that the Cadets' reactions against women in the institution are not necessarily sparked only by misogynist attitudes. This rejection of women is sparked many by a very real desire for these young Cadets to be free of many of the influences and restrictions placed on them by larger society that has a narrow and rigid understanding of masculinity.

Western society has gone a number of dramatic revisions of gender roles in the past several generations. Women have won the right to vote, they are increasingly employed outside the home, and are often seen in positions of political and economic power. One of the fallouts of this change in gender roles is a great deal of confusion about the status of masculinity in society. In our society, men are expected to be strong, steadfast, and affection between men is often discouraged, and seen as evidence of being homosexual.

In "The Naked Citadel," Susan Faludi describes a life in the Citadel, a military school, through a number of vignettes. Her article deals specifically with the harassment faced by Shannon Faulkner, the first woman to be admitted to the Citadel. Faludi's vignettes focus on a variety of themes, including a description of Jane Bishop's classroom, and a scene in the courtroom.

Faludi notes that the Citadel has a long history of treating women with little or no respect. This attitude toward women is perpetuated in many ways, including overt harassment of female cadets. Faludi portrays life in the Citadel as homoerotic, often violent, and characterized by domination and sadism.

Faludi notes that the Citadel provides an environment where many traditional standards and thoughts about masculinity are preserved. In a sense, the Citadel provides a "refuge" from the changes of the past decades. At a cursory glance, it is a place dominated by men and virile displays of violence, sadism, and traditional male hierarchy. Yet a closer examination reveals that the Citadel may be a place where men can escape many of the pressures that larger society places on their masculinity.

The women of the Citadel have a great deal to teach the men of the Citadel. The presence of women at the Citadel can be a catalyst that forces the men at the Citadel to examine their institution, and their attitudes toward masculinity. Ultimately, the presence of women may provide these men with a forced opportunity to examine their understanding of masculinity. In this sense, the women at the Citadel provide the men in the same institution with an perhaps unwelcome opportunity to examine their role in society, and potentially make changes in their attitudes and behaviors.

Certainly, an understanding of the female gender roles can help us to understand the role of masculinity in our society. Faludi notes, "Feminism has shown us that what we think of as feminine is actually defined by cultural messages and political agendas. The same holds true for men and for what constitutes masculinity. Being a feminist opens your eyes to the ways men, like women, are imprisoned in cultural stereotypes" (Halpern).

Importantly, women in the Citadel can help men in the institution better understand their role as men in society. While life in the Citadel is often seen as a "throw-back" to times when women had little or no power, there is in fact a much larger issue at stake. The presence of women at the Citadel forces us to see that the men in the Citadel have created a refuge from society in general, not just a refuge from women. In the Citadel, men are free from the pressures of the larger culture, and have a refuge from this pressure. As such, the presence of any outsider, in this case women, causes the men of the Citadel to feel that their safe sanctuary has been violated.

It is important to note that misogynist attitudes and beliefs at the Citadel are challenged by the presence of women at the institution. Certainly, there exists a great deal of resistance to the presence of women at the school. The presence of women in this institution threatens the very understanding and foundation of masculinity that exists for the men at the institution. If women can enter and succeed at the Citadel, then this means that the "machismo" and misogynist attitudes prevalent at the school have been misguided. In this way, the women of the Citadel can expose the men of the school to the reality that women can be both effective and successful soldiers.