Prologue: Symbols of security? J A Mangan; the Ephebia in the ancient Hellenic world and its role in making masculinity, Evangelos Albanidis; anthromorphic symbols of agression and mythical male heroes: fighting bulls in Southern European culture, Frederic Sauvade and Jean Michel Deleplace; asserting male values: 19th century fetes, games and masculinity - a French case study, Remi Dalisson; the other side of the coin: Victorian and Edwardian field sports, elite English education and middle-class masculinity, J A Mangan and Callum McKenzie; the masculine road through modernity: Ling gymnastics and male socialization in 19th century Sweden, Jens Ljunggren; athleticiam in the service of the proletariat: preperation for the elementary school and the extension of middle-class masculinity, J A Mangan and Colm Hickey; male rites of passage: Ollerup Danish gymnastic between the wars, Hans Bonde; pre-totalitarian, totalitarian and post-totalitarian masculinity: the projection of the male image in sports policy in Bulgaria, Vassil Girginov.