Betancourt is all too aware that neither of these statements is true—he explores dress codes and body policing in the next essay. Despite acknowledging that “what men want and what men look like aren’t questions to be asked in a vacuum,” Betancourt doesn’t make context central to his analysis. I am all for finding teleological value in desire, but Betancourt is thinking with the wrong head. Here, Betancourt’s personal experience is couched in a clear exploration of Colombian masculinity, augmenting close analysis of Hombres and its social mores rather than the other way around. Such is my issue with The Male Gazed: Betancourt’s trauma stalls his analytical propulsion.