Writing
Erick DuPree’s blog explores the intersections of anthropology, literature, and material culture to illuminate how identity, ritual, and meaning take shape across time and tradition. Blending scholarship with storytelling, these essays invite readers to engage critically and imaginatively with the cultural forces that shape both personal and collective experience.
It’s Okay To Be Angry
A powerful personal essay on queer masculinity, anger, and healing. Erick DuPree explores male wounds, the hero’s journey, and why masculinity isn’t toxic by nature—but in need of community, kinship, and care. Reclaiming manhood starts with letting ourselves be angry.
What Exactly Does It Mean To Be “Man Enough?”
A personal essay exploring fatherlessness, gender norms, and queer identity—unpacking what it means to be “man enough” in a world that punishes softness and fetishizes masculinity.
The Rambo Myth: How America Turned a War Criminal into a Hero
Rambo began as a brutal critique of war but became a symbol of American exceptionalism and toxic masculinity. This essay exposes how Hollywood rewrote a war criminal into a hero—and what that says about our need for moral clarity and mythic manhood.
Review of Shop Class as Soulcraft: An Inquiry into the Value of Work by Matthew Crawford
A powerful reflection on manual labor, identity, and meaning, Shop Class as Soulcraft explores how working with your hands can restore dignity, purpose, and connection in modern life.
Review of The Adonis Complex — A Must-Read on Male Body Image and Cultural Masculinity
The Adonis Complex exposes the hidden crisis of male body image issues—from muscle dysmorphia to steroid abuse. A must-read for anyone exploring masculinity, fitness culture, or men’s mental health. This powerful book reveals the emotional cost of chasing the "ideal" male body.