Review: "Wild at Heart"

Recently, Scott and I read the book Wild at Heart. This is an astute look at the innerworkings of human nature, and particularly what it means to be masculine. John Elderidge has spent many years in counselling and ministry and inflects his musings on the nature of masculinity with experience. Elderidge focuses on comparing the masculine nature of men to the nature of God by identifying three main categories that define masculinity: each man has a battle to fight, an adventure to live, and a beauty to fight for.

Initially, Scott and I agreed that these seemed like pretty narrow categories to fit into and that on the surface it would seem that some, if not most, would not desire to be included in such categories. Scott mentioned that he has never been a fighter and certainly avoids hurting another person at all costs. Scott has the desire, in fact, to been a healer, which seems quite the opposite of a fighter. Upon further reading and reflection though, we decided that being a fighter doesn't mean that every man is called to be a soldier, but rather men must be willing to "fight" for good always and to allow their strength to show through in this.

The call to men to step up to their roles and over-come their childhood created fears and views of themselves is a great one indeed, yet a reader may want to retain a skeptical eye throughout the piece. Generalizations about men are helpful in explaining the state of men today, but one must temper it with the experience of men in your own life. It is important to remember that every man might not fit 100% into these categories, but may be stronger or weaker depending on personality and environmental influences. Also, another point of caution would be regarding the tendency towards "theology from below" in which Elderidge makes several assumptions about the nature of God based on his observations of humanity. This seems to be a more evangelical-protestant point of view of God, so I overlooked it slightly, but it is still something to be aware of.

Overall, this is a thoughful view of the meaning and action of masculinity and what it means to be a man. Much of what Elderidge notes of the "feminization" of culture and of men rings true and I have often thought that this is the way in which our culture is moving as well. This call of "letting boys be boys" is helpful in a time when parents and educators are so quick to medicate their boys for being exactly what they are. Elderidge asks us to fight this tendency by understanding why it is that boys act the way they do, and to be able to respond accordingly.

I recommend this book to anyone looking for a thoughtful outlook on the importance of the difference of the sexes and what is behind masculinity at its heart.