Masculinity Beyond the Battlefield: Exploring Masculinities inside the Swedish Armed Forces and its Connection to the Private Sphere

Sammanfattning: The objective of this thesis is to analyse how masculinities inside the SwAF are manifested as well as how these affect the civil life of male soldiers. This is achieved by using a set of individual case studies where semi-structured interviews serve as the main data. To study masculinities I chose to use Connell's concept of hegemonic masculinities. In addition to this, I used Annika Kronsell's method of "gendered silence" to strengthen my arguments surrounding hegemonic masculinities. The thesis’ essence centres on the concept that "the personal is political" meaning that structures of the personal are connected to the political. This thesis is used to connect the structures inside the military sphere to the private sphere. Through this research, I found several masculinities, among others the idolisation of toughness end grit. I also found evidence of hegemonic masculinities in relation to militarised masculinities, which states masculinities are considered inseparable from the military. The analyses also showed that soldiers embedded in this hegemonic masculinity were also more likely to ignore the structural problems of the SwAF. Finally, I make the connection between the masculinities which embed the deep comradery of the Armed Forces with the othering felt in the private sphere.