After discussion about some of the topics that would be covered in the essay, it was established that by looking at some of the core reasons behind society's drive for fitness, it may be possible to better understand the industry. Therefore, by researching masculinity it would reveal how men are perceived and how they perceive one another in a time of constant change. One book that look at the issues of masculinity in wider contexts was Grayson Perry's 2016 book, The Descent of Man. I found this to be a hugely insightful look at the 'modern man' and how we establish the requirements, ideals and characterisation of different men.
Chapter 1 - If it ain't broke don't fix it
page 4 - 'For males, being masculine, acting in a manly way, is unquestionably a biological part of them as their penis and testicles and deep voice. But masculinity is mainly a set of habits, traditions and beliefs historically associated with being a man.'
'We need to shift away from seeing masculinity as a closed set of behaviours and from seeing change as threatening, unnatural and feminizing. I see masculinity as being how men behave at present. I think it needs to change to include behaviours that are at present regarded by many as feminine, behaviours that are sensible, life enhancing and planet-saving.'
Chapter 2 - Asking fish about water
In the second chapter of the book, Perry goes on to talk about a characterisation of what he calls the 'Default Man'. The Default Man is a white, middle-class, heterosexual and usually middle-aged man who is likely to fit into the high-status, high-earning and high-power roles of society. This caricature imagined by Perry is a symbol of the man that society perceives to be one of the more desirable masculine figures. Through identifying him in this way, it is clear to see how there is an imbalance and power difference in male dominated society, with many of the highest paid jobs and powerful positions in governments being controlled by men.
page 22 - 'A move away from the long dominance of the Default Man is happening, but slowly. Across the world, political correctness is morphing from 'madness' into common sense. Equality must change from feeling disruptive to feeling necessary and comforting. We need to reconfigure what it is to be masculine, so that men can handle an equal society. One could argue that with its impulse to dominate, masculinity is at odds with modernism and its drive towards a fair society.'
page 31 - 'The Industrial Revolution cemented masculine dominance. In pre-industrial society, men mainly worked close to home; now men went out to work, and eventually this led to the public realm being more associated with men and masculinity, while the home became the sphere of women and femininity. Some men's rights campaigners have since gone on to blame what they see as the feminizing of men on the fact that women have had to bring up boys on their own for much of the time, while conveniently forgetting that, as with the vast majority of huge changes in society, the Industrial Revolution was driven, conceived and controlled by - you guessed it - men.'
Page 40 - ' On one side of the debate around the crisis of masculinity there is often a call to reassert a 'natural' embodied masculinity that will last and be relevant for all time. This noble beast is just a Tarzan call away from the contemporary male benighted by modernity, and is ready and waiting to rescue and revive the feminized male masses, We see this vision of masculinity rearing its head on TV programmes fronted by the likes of Bear Grylls or Ray Mears.'
Chapter 3 - The department of masculinity
Page 51 - Grayson talks about the way in which traditionally men are expected to dress a certain way and any attempt to mimic the shopping and styling behaviours of women is seen as unnatural. He writes, 'The strict code of old-school masculinity, where shopping for clothes feels feminized, is absorbed at a young age. The idea that you can buy the role off the peg assaults the unconsciously held notion that the man is the authentic, natural, uncorrupted one.' 'The female wardrobe is seen as one big extraneous addition, all artifice, hairdos, make-up, frills and heels, while men's clothes are entirely necessary for function and little more.'
page 54 - Grayson has a theory that gender roles could be seen as a performance, that men have a choice in the way they act and do so in ways that signal to others the nature of their gender. For example, he talks about the way in which some men will openly showcase certain traits of 'typical masculinity' through means of either extreme bodybuilding. He says they do this because it signals to other males just how 'masculine' they are. He says 'I often look at men and think that they seem to be victims of this drive to perform their gender. What are they afraid of? Why do they play the man so extremely, whether with muscles or knowledge or wit?' 'Though men might plead that their muscles, big cars and sharp suits are for attracting women, really they are for impressing male rivals.'
Page 86/87 - Grayson talks about a group of youths in Skelmersdale in comparison to tribesmen and their tendency to be violent to rival gangs.
As a result of our social experiment, we were able to entice 27 people in under 30 minutes to sign up for the competition. This meant that almost 1 person would be signing up per minute that we were stood outside. As we allowed people to sign up we also noticed that no one was willing to read the terms and conditions and instead chose to enter their personal details, including phone number, email address and full name. This goes to show that for a competition that appealed to the student population, it was easy to obtain personal information about people and how they would be unaware of the use of their data. Within 24 hours of beginning the task, we were able to connect with over 50 followers on Instagram, create a uniform to wear on the day, create a poster, brand identity and believable sign up sheet which allowed for the idea to become more authentic. 
One source for this research was the Wolfox Cafe's Instagram as it would provide our social media with inspiration for a professional looking business. Many of the posts on their Instagram were of coffee, lunches and other snacks available, all of which would look professionally photographed or edited. This works well for the platform as the followers were giving positive feedback to the account and its content.