SINHAS Vol 30 No 2 Gaurav Lamichhane
When Men Fail: Emasculation, Vulnerability, and the Biomedical Gaze in Nepali Fertility Clinics
Gaurav Lamichhane
Abstract
This article examines the profound anxiety, vulnerability, and emasculation experienced by involuntarily childless Nepali men. Through ethnographic fieldwork in two fertility clinics, the study reveals how childlessness is perceived not merely as a medical issue but as a catastrophic failure to perform “lineal masculinity”—a hegemonic ideal rooted in Hindu patriliny that obligates men to biologically continue their lineage (va§÷a) and transmit property (a§÷a). Men face intense social stigma, encapsulated by terms like kamjorã (weakness) and nàmarda (non-man, impotent), which render them vulnerable to ridicule and exclusion. The clinical space, far from being a neutral site of biomedical solution, becomes a further arena of emasculation. Men experience disempowerment through coercive treatment decisions, a systemic lack of emotional support, and humiliating violations of privacy during procedures like semen collection. The analysis demonstrates that the relentless pursuit of biological fatherhood is driven by a cultural imperative that tethers a man’s social worth and identity to his reproductive capacity. Ultimately, this article argues that for Nepali men, fatherhood is a mandatory performance of identity, and its failure carries devastating social and psychological consequences.
Keywords: Masculinity, infertility, emasculation, vulnerability, biomedical gaze, lineal masculinity, patriarchy, childlessness
When Men Fail: Emasculation, Vulnerability, and the Biomedical Gaze in Nepali Fertility Clinics
Gaurav Lamichhane
Abstract
This article examines the profound anxiety, vulnerability, and emasculation experienced by involuntarily childless Nepali men. Through ethnographic fieldwork in two fertility clinics, the study reveals how childlessness is perceived not merely as a medical issue but as a catastrophic failure to perform “lineal masculinity”—a hegemonic ideal rooted in Hindu patriliny that obligates men to biologically continue their lineage (va§÷a) and transmit property (a§÷a). Men face intense social stigma, encapsulated by terms like kamjorã (weakness) and nàmarda (non-man, impotent), which render them vulnerable to ridicule and exclusion. The clinical space, far from being a neutral site of biomedical solution, becomes a further arena of emasculation. Men experience disempowerment through coercive treatment decisions, a systemic lack of emotional support, and humiliating violations of privacy during procedures like semen collection. The analysis demonstrates that the relentless pursuit of biological fatherhood is driven by a cultural imperative that tethers a man’s social worth and identity to his reproductive capacity. Ultimately, this article argues that for Nepali men, fatherhood is a mandatory performance of identity, and its failure carries devastating social and psychological consequences.
Keywords: Masculinity, infertility, emasculation, vulnerability, biomedical gaze, lineal masculinity, patriarchy, childlessness