Sorry I Don't Dance: Why Men Refuse to Move

If you want to learn about masculinity, ask a man if he likes to dance. One man in this study answered, "Music is something that goes on inside my head, and is sort of divorced from, to a large extent, the rest of my body." How did this man's head become divorced from his body? To answer this question, Maxine Craig sought out men who love music but hate to dance. Combining interviews, participant observation and archival research, Sorry I Don't Dance uncovers the recent origins of cultural assumptions regarding sex, race, and the capacity to dance. From the beginning of the twentieth century through the Swing Era young men of all races danced. But in the 1960s suburbanization, homophobia, and fragmentation of music cultures drove white men from the dance floor, and feminized, sexualized and racialized dance. Sorry I Don't Dance reveals how changing beliefs concerning gender, race, class, and sexuality over the past half-century have redefined what it means to be a man in America.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgements Chapter 1: Searching for Dancing Men Chapter 2: The New Woman and the Old Man Chapter 3: Becoming White Folk Chapter 4: Dancing in Uniform Chapter 5: Managing the Gaze Chapter 6: Stepping On and Across Boundaries Chapter 7: Sex or "Just Dancing" Chapter 8: Conclusions Appendices Notes Bibliography Index

About the Author :
Maxine Leeds Craig is Associate Professor of Women and Gender Studies at the Univeristy of California, Davis. She is the author of Ain't I a Beauty Queen?: Black Women, Beauty, and the Politics of Race.

Review :
"Yes! Real men dance-which comes as quite a relief to this man who spent hundreds of hours in front of a mirror mastering the dance steps to the Temptations' 'My Girl.' And they always have danced-from mining camps to tea lounges, army bases to discos. Combining deft historical excavation and discerning interviews, Maxine Craig shows men hogtied by an ideology of masculinity that leaves them barely able to sway against the wall. Her book will help them heed the urgings of so many singers, from Sly Stone to David Bowie. Let's dance." -Michael Kimmel, Distinguished Professor of Sociology and Gender Studies, SUNY Stony Brook "Rich with insight, Sorry I Don't Dance maps the ever-shifting field of dance and movement, its entanglements with race, sex and sexuality, social class, the meaning of American patriotism, and morality. Craig draws together a range of materials that permit both historical analysis of masculine dance practice and a fine-tuned analysis of the everyday landscape of contemporary men and masculine embodiment. A sensitive investigation of a complicated topic." -Amy Best, author of Prom Night "For anyone who has tried to get a man to dance, Maxine Craig shows how a man's refusal or acceptance has little to do with his would-be partner and much to do with how he was raised, in what communities and time period, and whether he experiences dance as threatening or enhancing his masculinity. Craig weaves together sophisticated analyses of the race, class, gender and sexual dimensions of embodied performance with evocative and eye-opening stories and interviews." -Miliann Kang, author of The Managed Hand "Maxine Leeds Craig has written an important book for anyone who wants to understand masculinity. Craig shows through historical analysis a variety of modern examples of dance associated with the image of man. When men say they do not want to dance, or when they express a negative view on dance, it is much more complex than just an expression of personal taste. If you want to learn about masculinity, ask a man if he wants to dance. If you want to learn more about dance and masculinity, read Sorry I Don't Dance." -Nordic Sport Science Forum "The most important aspects of the book for sociologists are the ways that Craig contributes by theorizing across boundaries. At a time when subareas of the field have become relatively autonomous from each other and are speaking only internally to themselves, here we have an opportunity to see queer, gender, and sexuality theory speaking to a wider sociological audience. By drawing both a historical account and linking these notions to embodiment, cultural practices, and performativity, Sorry I Don't Dance does not just speak to those interested in gender and sexuality, but to those theorizing social life more generally-an address that is of importance for us all." - American Journal of Sociology