Challenging Hegemonic Masculinity Through the Use of Epic Fantasy : Using The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson to analyze hegemonic masculinity and its potential for classroom appropriation.

The aim of this thesis is to argue that using the novel The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson to explore the concepts of gender roles, with masculinity and its hegemonic aspect at the forefront, through the fields of gender studies and gender pedagogy, will provide grounds for meaningful classroom discussions and activities in the Swedish upper secondary school by drawing parallels between the fictional society presented in the novel and our own. Three main traits of hegemonic masculinity are analyzed and applied to the characters Kaladin, Dalinar and Jasnah, namely physical assertiveness, egocentric individualism, and domination. The novel’s potential for use within the Swedish upper secondary school, specifically in the course English 7, is analyzed. The domination trait of hegemonic masculinity was found noticeably absent in the three protagonists, while this trait could be found amongst the novel’s antagonists. Potential was found in using the novel to lessen the effects of the boy crisis in the Swedish school system