The Power of the Man

Abstract This chapter employs masculinity studies to explore how power is manifested in the figure of “the man” in the stories of Goliath, Absalom, and Mephibosheth. It particularly considers how animals (both imagery of animals and relationships with animals) contribute to the construction of the characters’ masculinity, and how these power dynamics of gender and species intersect with other power dynamics: in particular, Goliath’s ethnicity, Absalom’s socio-economic status, and Mephibosheth’s disability. It analyses how, through the use of animals, masculinity is scripted and performed in these men’s bodies, behaviors, and words, and how it manifests itself in the stories’ final death scenes. It argues that Goliath finds his masculine power progressively undermined as his battle with David unfolds; Absalom gives a surface impression of masculine prowess, but is always subject to undertones of suspicion; and Mephibosheth oscillates between grasping and losing a subordinate masculine status.