Boys (Don’t) Cry. On (De)Constructing the Stereotype of Masculinity in Polish Opera for Children

Abstract

This article examines the representation of boys in Polish opera for children, with particular attention to their emotionality. Such a perspective situates the study within broader reflections on the construction of male identity in art, film, theatre, literature, the press, and advertising, as outlined in typologies of Polish academic discourse on masculinity. The analysis seeks to address the following questions: Which models of masculinity operate in Polish children’s opera? Does this genre reinforce established stereotypes in its portrayals of male protagonists, or does it subvert them by articulating alternative images of boyhood and young masculinity? Furthermore, in line with Krzysztof Arcimowicz’s conceptual framework, to what extent does Polish opera for children adhere to a traditional paradigm of masculinity, or participate in the emergence of a new one?