Learning Curve

“Male Bonding and Inter-Male Conflict in United States Fraternities” was written as my graduate thesis at Oregon State University. My aim was to discuss various aspects of male bonding with fraternity members and to inquire why incidents of rape and violent hazing sometimes occur.

Naturally, my research took off in many surprising directions that I had never anticipated (secret initiation rituals, racial barriers on membership and attempts to overcome them, highly covert “fraternities” that powerfully manipulated school courts and newspapers for decades, violence against rival fraternities, conflicts with feminist organizations, and interviews at fraternity houses were a rape had recently taken place).

As a result, this graduate research has experienced minor cult status and it was consistently checked out of the university library for years afterward. Most surviving copies eventually vanished and this book was thought to be permanently lost. Luckily, an electronic copy has just been made available for exclusive use on this website.

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background
Statement of Problem
Statement of Purpose

CHAPTER TWO: METHODOLOGY
Background
Ethnographic Methods
The Sample Group
The Interview Process
Limitations
Feminism and Myself
Fraternities and Myself

CHAPTER THREE: THEORY REVIEW
Background
Lionel Tiger
Feminist Perspectives
The Männerbünde
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective
Related Research

CHAPTER FOUR: FRATERNITY: PAST AND PRESENT
Background
The European Roots
American Fraternities

The Local Experience
Case Study One: Sigma Chi
Case Study Two: Theta Nu Epsilon

CHAPTER FIVE: RESULTS OF INTERVIEWS
Background
The Male Bond: Defining the Object
A House Divided: Internal Conflict
A House Divided: Competing Hierarchies
A House Divided: Building on Dichotomies
Fraternity Rituals: The Initiation Ceremony
Fraternity Rituals: The On-Going Process
The Mirror Image: Fraternity Rivalry
Perceived Injustice: Feminists
Perceived Injustice: The Black Lantern Procession

CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSIONS
Summary
The Endless Cycle: Rituals and Physical Aggression
Fraternities and Power Hierarchies
Looking Ahead: The Possible Future of Fraternities
Recommendations for Future Research

WORKS CITED

Fraternities and their alumni will most likely continue as powerful forces at United States universities. They have survived many conflicts throughout history, and all evidence suggests they will remain campus strongholds in the future. However, the vital questions are what type of male leader does the fraternity system want to produce?  Will these leaders  be best equipped to respond to a rapidly changing world that promotes racial and gender equality? Will they just stick to traditional power roles and the usual elitism? The choice is theirs to make? (more…)