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Since the early 19th century, Western society has adopted a view of male ballet dancers, or ''danseurs'' as weak, effeminate or homosexual. ==Response of male dancers== William L. Earl's 1988 exploration of American stereotypes asked upper-middle class mall shoppers to describe male ballet dancers, as a whole, using up to 15 words or phrases. The most common responses were: "Pretty boys afraid to soil themselves with honest labor", "Snobs!", "secretive", "neurotic", "narcissistic", "soft", "vain", "frail", "homosexual", “irresponsible", "probably hard workers", "Momma's Boy", "creatures of the night", "flighty", "afraid of intimacy", "use people", "cold", and "fancy".〔Earl, William L. "A Dancer Takes Flight: Psychological Concerns in the Development of the American Male Dancer" p. 16-17〕 In a 2003 sociological study, male ballet dancers reported several stereotypes they had been confronted with including "feminine, homosexual, wimp, spoiled, gay, dainty, fragile, weak, fluffy, woosy, prissy, artsy and sissy".〔Fisher, Jennifer. "Make it Maverick: Rethinking the "Make it Macho" Strategy for men in Ballet." p. 45.〕 In preparation for their 2009 anthology on masculinity and dance, Jennifer Fisher and Anthony Shay interviewed several male dancers from different age groups, ethnic backgrounds, and sexualities. In the interviews, the men were asked questions pertaining to the biased picture of male dancers such as "Do you think you’re now surrounded by any stereotypes about men and dancing?" and "Are there perceptions about men who dance that you think need changing?"〔Fisher, Jennifer and Shay, Anthony. "When Men Dance: Choreographing Masculinities Across Borders." p. 402.〕 One of the dancers interviewed, Aaron Cota, came up against unfair prejudices but helped dispel them. He took some time off to enter the Marine Corps. He tells of his fellow Marines’ reaction: "When they found out that (would be earning a ) dance degree, they were like 'What? You’re what?'. They were kind of confused. You just have to explain it to them. When the guys in my unit would see some of the things I’ve done, or they see videos of other people dance, and they’re like, 'Holy crap, how can they do that?' ... and they’re like 'Wow, that’s amazing,' and 'That’s kind of opened my eyes ...'".〔Fisher, Jennifer and Shay, Anthony. "When Men Dance: Choreographing Masculinities Across Borders." p. 51-52.〕 Another dancer, David Allan, experienced very negative effects of the stereotype growing up. He tells of the time he performed in his school’s talent show at age eleven, "I was so excited about doing ''A Dance from David'', my first choreography. So, when I came out in my pretty white tights, there was a big roar of laughter.... Later I met some guys in the hallway of my school who were making rude comments ... 'You’re that dancer guy' would turn into being thrown down the stairs."〔Fisher, Jennifer and Shay, Anthony. "When Men Dance:Choreographing Masculinities Across Borders." p. 81.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Western stereotype of the male ballet dancer」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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