GYPSY MASCULINITIES AND THE SCHOOL-HOME INTERFACE: EXPLORING CONTRADICTIONS AND TENSIONS.

On one site a warning was given to the primary investigator to take care when speaking to Nobby, of whom the other men spoke with grudging respect. As one of them pointed out, 'He could talk you into anything. See that place there-[pointing to a nearby sewage processing plant]. He could sell them bags of shit!' On another site a conversation with one group of men began with talk of business skills, and turned to the best deals ever made; in particular, to the exploits of a renowned individual who was compared with a fox. Examples of his dealing at fairs suggested both acumen and a readiness to cheat. The marvel was that although everyone seemed to know about his reputation, they kept getting 'rolled over' time and time again.

The use of underhand tricks would seem to be acceptable so long as the victims are not friends or family. Mention was made of one man who had been ostracised for cheating a cousin who had been working as his partner, although it was acknowledged the trick he had played had been well conceived. Getting one over on other people, nonetheless, is an ability held in high regard, especially if it entails some duplicity at the expense of a rival family or non-Gypsies. A deconstruction of the processes involved reveal an array of essential skills, which include business knowledge, memory, psychological astuteness, acting skills and charm. Such knowledge is inculcated through an upbringing that (in some ways) effectively constitutes apprenticeship to older male relatives.

It was pointed out on several occasions that such skills were unlikely to be acquired at school. As Alfie (aged 30s) commented: 'They're learning more at home. Why waste time at school? They're going to have to fend for themselves one day'. At the same time, it could be argued that school provides opportunities to develop certain skills that could be useful in gaining material advantage over others, especially when more na•ve (usually, non-Gypsy) fellow pupils are concerned:

FIGHTING

In their study of two contrasting primary schools in the UK, Epstein et al. (2001) suggest that the ability to play sport well and/or the ability to fight are important means of constructing gender in ways that involve the reproduction of hegemonic cultural identities and relations of power. They emphasise that, under specific conditions, football and fighting simultaneously solidify and cut across ethnic boundaries, and that many boys become deeply invested in these activities as the primary signifiers of masculinity. Certainly, for the boys in their study, being a 'real man' was established through their prowess in both activities, and they gained status with other boys and with girls through them. Indeed, Epstein et al. argue that: 'Football and fighting become a measure of success for boys/men and a more important achievement than academic success, while relative failure or lack of interest in them becomes a marker of stigmatised effeminacy or homosexuality' (2001, p. 159).

In our study, fighting was deemed a crucial signifier of masculinity. Gypsies of all ages boasted about fights in which they have been involved, and there was almost universal condemnation of those who evade fighting. Such avoidance is seen as cowardly and dishonourable, unless the odds were so great that running away in order to fight another day was deemed the only viable option.

On one site anecdotes were shared with the primary investigator about a man who was referred to as 'Brock' (a badger) on account of his fighting style-'Try to corner 'im and 'e rips yer guts out'. Although it seemed that nobody really liked him, Brock was respected as 'a proper scrapper', whose friendship it was expedient to retain 'in case you're ever in a scrape and things turn nasty'. Several incidents were reported. Once, for instance, after his best friend crossed him, Brock 'did him good and proper, and left him for dead'. On another occasion, after a bout of drinking, Brock took it into his head to visit another site all on his own and challenged all the men there.

The impression was that, through Brock's notoriety, all the males on his site gained a certain prestige. Indeed, one elderly man bemoaned the fact that there were fewer 'real scrappers' these days, and suggested that moving into houses, going to school, and generally 'living like Gadje' was the reason for this. Nevertheless, the primary investigator was told about many men who sounded like 'real scrappers' to him. Some reference was also made to organised fighting, for instance, bare-knuckle fights, where gambling on the outcome would occur. In various contexts, threats were made with reference to others out of all proportion to the offences committed. That is, throats were going to get cut, bellies slit open and faces slashed, for relatively minor indiscretions.

Indeed, a striking aspect of the transcripts of the conversations with Gypsy men was the number of references to fighting. More often than not these have involved intragroup fighting:

Similarly, Duke (aged 20s) recounted a fight he had one Saturday night with his brother-in-law:

Detailed accounts were provided of altercations in which people were stabbed, had ribs broken or faces slashed with bottles, and invariably those concerned spoke of getting even at some future date. It was also evident that fights tended to spread beyond the original protagonists; far from being solely a mechanism for resolving disputes, fighting was depicted as a means of constructing and maintaining family alliances and hierarchies. As Miranda, a fieldworker noted:

A central function of fights is in the cementing of male relationships. Even George, as mild and courteous a man as one could wish to encounter, boasted of a fight he had been involved in. In this case, the fighting was inter-communal.

There is the impression here of something almost ritualistic about George's 'rush of blood', as if his participation in the fight was part of some private initiation giving him full membership of his group, while allowing him also the future pleasure of reminiscence as an insider. At times, particular skirmishes have been described as if events in some epic. Although there has been a certain amount of rationalisation on the subject-'Best way to get things over and done with', 'it clears the air'-fighting itself has a deeper significance than the resolution of differences; it almost appears to be a cultural statement, part of a heritage, 'our way', as one participant summed it up. However, in the school milieu the propensity to seek quick, violent resolutions to problems is not generally perceived as desirable. As an inter-group solution, the 'Gypsy way' to sort out grudges is not acceptable, while the social meaning of internal altercations between two or more Gypsy pupils is often not understood.

While the men tell stories of fights outside pubs or around sites, boys give accounts of incidents in the playground or outside the school gates. In both cases, there is much exaggeration and posturing, injuries are reported in graphic detail and old scars shown with pride. These stories seem integral to the construction of a particular male identity that used the spaces available within the school context for its performance and practice. Thus, many of the men interviewed, particularly those in their teens and 20s, appeared to revel in their memories of confrontations at school as it provided a forum in which they could affirm and confirm a sense of masculine pride:

Duke (aged 20s) noted that, despite the fact that he had hated it at the time, he now missed school. Significantly, all his fondest memories entailed fighting:

Few of the Gypsy parents who were interviewed expressed any disapproval of fighting. One teenager said that the only time his father had ever taken any interest in his experiences at school was when he had broken another boy's jaw in a fight. The teachers interviewed confirmed that Gypsy boys tend to be involved in a disproportionate amount of violence:

Incidents of violence in school involving Gypsy pupils tend to divide into two patterns. The first, involves the resolution of intra-group conflicts emanating from outside school. Jamie (aged 12) said that his mother had instructed him to 'do' two children from another family who lived on the same site if he ever got the chance at school. Likewise, Sylvester (aged 13) was going to 'sort out' some children who had recently moved off his site to live in a house because of a dispute involving his uncle and their father.

The second pattern involves sudden inter-group outbreaks within school, usually after a playground dispute, during which divisions are almost invariably on Gypsy versus non-Gypsy lines [4]. Group solidarity was often seen as a distinctive feature of Gypsy society:

Sue (aged 10), Liam's cousin, was also scathing about the lack of group solidarity among non-Gypsies, appearing to see nothing contradictory or paradoxical in her observation that 'although we fight amongst ourselves, we always stick together'. As in Duke's case (see earlier), rare exceptions to these patterns were reported by Gypsy youngsters involving outbreaks of inter-school violence, when they allied with non-Gypsy pupils against (non-Gypsy) pupils from a rival school.

Frequently, disdain was directed by Gypsy boys at their non-Gypsy counterparts, the most common criticism being that they were inferior at fighting. As Rob (aged 11) commented: 'They're just wimps, softies. They don't know how to fight. They punch you like this (Rob waves his arm in the air, ineffectually). They're scared of us'.

Ben (aged 11) suggested that non-Gypsy boys were inferior because 'they can't mend things, they don't like getting their hands dirty, and they're too weak to pick anything up'. At times, there has seemed a certain brittleness in this sense of superiority; although weakness has rarely been acknowledged, a few of the younger boys have confided that fear of bullying from non-Gypsy boys has led to a dread of school. For example, Robbie and Stan (both aged 7), rather shy boys who were in agreement that school was fun for 'writing, drawing and playing games', said that, nonetheless, they would prefer to be at home, 'out "lamping" [catching rabbits] or picking mushrooms'. They admitted to a sense of dread with regard to certain aspects of school life, and insisted that they would never tell their parents about all the 'fighting and pinching'. Richard, their teacher, suggested subsequently that the boys were 'not untypical' and that many of the younger

(Gypsy) boys seemed passive at first, though often becoming more aggressive as they grew older. Supporting this view, Wayne (aged 11) stated: 'I used to get upset when people called me "Dirty Gyppo" and names like that, but not any more. Now if anyone says it, I 'its 'em'.

When Gypsy children do not resolve bullying incidents themselves, fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, cousins, grandparents seem willing to do it for them. Barney (aged 9) confessed to having mixed feelings when his brother came up and 'kicked shit' out of an older boy who had been bullying him:

In fact, most of the boys interviewed, especially the older ones, opposed the idea of informing anyone else, even when they were outnumbered. Overall, there seems an air of helplessness as well as defiance in the advice one father admitted to proffering to his son as a way of dealing with the (non-Gypsy) bullies who were tormenting him: 'Get 'em on the floor, give 'em a kicking, then run like fuck'.

SEX TALK

From the comments of the men and boys involved in our study, it would appear that status is often associated with sexual prowess. If such a perspective is constructed by males, however, it would seem that there is some degree of collusion on the part of females. Most Gypsy women made no reference to the subject of sexuality during interviews or conversations. However, in spite of the putative strictness with regard to female modesty in Gypsy culture, a small number of female participants were not reticent, and some were voluble on the topic, particularly when discussing the affairs of other families:

While discussing the respective roles of males and females, Tommy (aged 11) began to talk about his uncle, who was 'a good laugh' but 'a bit of a waster'. Tommy went on to recount a conversation he claimed to have overheard, during which his aunt had remarked that although his uncle might not have been much of a man in some ways, he could 'get it up on demand'.

On a couple of occasions, mothers have seemed rather proud of the exploits of their sons, whose behaviour is sometimes denied, but rarely condemned, at home. Many mothers argued that it was the responsibility of teachers to prevent such activities. Acknowledging that the school her son attended had made frequent complaints about his behaviour, Lisa (aged 30s) demanded to know what she was expected to do and blamed non-Gypsy girls for 'having no shame'. In the context of in-group relations, the problem can be more serious. Lenny (aged 16) has got a reputation with the girls. Estelle (Lenny's mother) informed me that some of the other mothers had complained about his behaviour:

On a separate occasion, Estelle did not even try to make excuses for Lenny. Other mothers were jealous, she affirmed, and if some of their tales were true, not that she was admitting anything, then it only proved his virility. The impression given by both Estelle and other mothers was that it was up to families to look after their daughters and to inculcate them with 'decency'.

Relatively little reference to sexuality was apparent in the comments of adult male participants. When there was talk of relationships, quite often the subject of 'ownership' was implied. As Duke (aged 20s) stated: 'There's one bloke, 'e comes up and chats up my missus. I've kicked 'is 'ead in twice. And 'e's still a cocky, little fucker. I scarred the fucker and 'e still won't behave 'isself'.

Adult and teenage male participants quite often referred to sexuality in terms of status:

A number of teenage boys boasted about their conquests. At times, school has been depicted as an arena in which they can demonstrate their appeal to the opposite sex. Ray (aged 15) boasted that non-Gypsy girls 'can't get enough of us'. 'We're sexier, we're better-looking, and we shag faster', suggested Jason (age 13) by way of explanation.

It is not surprising in this context that the behaviour of some Gypsy boys leads to conflict in schools, and evidence from teachers and fieldworkers suggests that, in some instances at least, there is more than mere swagger and posturing in the aforementioned comments:

One of the most salient features of conversations with younger boys was a pre-occupation with sexuality for its own sake. This tended to manifest itself in the form of bravado. As Jo-Jo (aged 8) commented: 'You know Rocky? That's my cousin ... erm ... uncle, I think. We seen 'im last night-'avin a fucky. 's true. You ask Ray. With smelly Donna 'e was. Ooo, I 'ate her! Know what we call 'im? Rockybigcocky'.

Quite commonly, there seemed a link between money / status and sexuality:

Tim's aspirations here seem to be linked to a sense of insecurity. He would seem to want to impress partners, so that they would never select a different mate. Moreover, other males would also be impressed. Being rich and being well-endowed seem to be the formula for success. Lee (aged 8) bragged that he could get 'as much skirt as I want. And money. Lots of it!' Meanwhile, Ziggy (aged 9), who said that he was on a 'final warning' at school on account of all the fights he had been involved in, claimed to have ignored recent gibes about being a 'Gyppo' and 'stinking', but punched a boy in the face for calling him a 'girl'.

These comments support the view of Kehily (2001) who, based on an ethnographic study of a secondary school, suggested that heterosexual relations are viewed as a way of demonstrating a particular masculinity that can be used to command respect and confer status on some males while deriding others. Here, as with fighting, there is an emphasis on the physicality of the body that is articulated in terms of activity and performance. Thus, as Kehily reminds us, the physical sense of maleness is constantly constituted as 'doing' heterosexuality: 'In the interactions between young men in school, heterosexuality can be seen as a practice involving a set of social performances in relation to young women and other males ... a way of demonstrating a particular masculinity that can be exercised to establish a position of privilege within the male peer group' (2001, p. 178). For her, sex talk between males can serve a variety of purposes and can have a range of effects. These include policing the boundaries of gender-appropriate behaviour for young men and women, providing an imaginary ideal of desirable masculinity, bolstering the reputation of particular males, concealing vulnerabilities and producing heterosexual hierarchies.

CHANGING CLIMATES AND MASCULINE IDENTITY DILEMMAS

If anything, changing economic circumstances in the past 50 years have augmented the male power base within the family. However, other factors, such as absent fathers, counterbalance the situation, sometimes obliging mothers to accept certain 'male' responsibilities. As Miranda, a fieldworker, pointed out: 'Most of the young men are in prison-violence, robbery and criminal damage. The older men are a bit more stable. It makes it a matriarchal society'.

Patterns vary from site to site. In some situations there seem to be relatively few males in their late teens and 20s. Around sites the occasional absences of fathers and older brothers can enhance the status of younger males. John (aged 30s) said that he was unhappy that he seemed to have to travel further and further afield to find work, and that meant leaving his wife and family for long periods. He was particularly worried about the risks that posed for his 13-year-old daughter. Ken (aged 20s) agreed, adding that some of the older teenage boys were getting above themselves. He did not feel comfortable, he said, knowing that they were around his wife when he was away. Far from agreeing with such a viewpoint, his wife (Laura, aged 20s) suggested that nowadays girls were 'much better at looking after themselves', and Ken was 'just a bit old-fashioned'.

Increasing sedentarisation is an influential factor, and despite the relative freedom of males to continue their old working patterns, as compared with the apparent increase of restrictions for females who have previously operated in close-knit, social groups, a number of children have suggested that it is their fathers who have encountered more problems when their families have moved into settled patterns. An observation made by some mothers has been that it is the men who oppose change and find adaptation to changing circumstances more difficult. In certain cases, it would seem that they have suffered withdrawal symptoms from life on the road, as well as a loss of self-esteem as a result of lack of opportunity to exert authority by making decisions about movement.

In some areas, work is more available for women than men. This can lead to low self-esteem among the men. In such situations, or indeed when there is work for both parents, there can be resentment from some females about the burden of work at home. Another complaint has been that some husbands continue to expect their wives to bring in money when there simply are no longer the opportunities to do so. At the same time, there can also be a good deal of collaboration on the part of females in the maintenance of traditional roles. As Julie (aged 19) stated: 'I was helping from the time I could walk. By the age of 8, I was doing a lot of the cleaning at home. I mean that's natural, like. You can't get a boy to wash up: 'e'd grow up all puffified; woman-like'.

In general, however, males have seemed more resistant to change. Younger boys, in particular, have often articulated reactionary viewpoints. Kev (aged 6) said that, as soon as he got home, he went out to play or settled down to watch television, while his sister helped with jobs. 'That's what girls are for', he added. Wayne (aged 11) observed that 'Mums are good for working ... getting money ... cooking. Dads make decisions'.

Increased exposure to different value systems can lead to contradictions for younger males, the need to reconcile home and school expectations leading to difficulties for some. One fieldworker described how a boy who had always been 'helpful' in school suddenly became 'abusive' when she asked him to do something at home, shouting: 'You're just a Gadje. I'm getting my dad on you'. Her interpretation was that it would have meant a loss of face to be seen helping a woman, particularly a non-Gypsy, on his own territory. Fieldworkers and teachers viewed Gypsy boys with some apprehension, making comments such as: 'The boys tend to have two modes: charming and sullen', 'They have split personalities', 'You're always on the look-out for their sudden mood swings', 'They can be easy-going ... pliable ... then quite suddenly, apparently without reason, vicious'. However, evidence from younger Gypsy boys suggests that, far from being 'without reason', behavioural changes occur when they feel slighted or demeaned, when, in effect, the construction of their own masculinity is threatened.

Nevertheless, forces, both internal and external, are leading to gradual compromises and the growth of more radical ideas. Privately acknowledging that things had changed in his own home, but insisting that he should not be quoted (as well as on the assurance of complete anonymity), one middle-aged, male participant suggested that many men had been forced into adaptations while maintaining an unchanged public facade. He declined, however, to elucidate the nature of those adaptations.

CONTRASTING VALUE SYSTEMS

Certain areas seem salient with regard to conflicting attitudes at home and school. The first lies in perceptions of the place of the individual within the group, and the second relates to attitudes towards learning.

With regard to the first, many participants have given the impression of identities framed by a simple equation; central to those identities is a sense of being Rom through not being Gadje. The use of contingency as an explanation of selfhood and identity would appear to limit the options of the individual. It is interesting that a number of participants have described events as if they were personally affected when subsequently it has turned out that it was, actually, other family members who were involved. The appropriation of the experiences of others may have more than one meaning. Although we are inclined to lean more towards its interpretation as a narrative strategy than as evidence of some 'group memory', there is also an implication of intensely close familial ties connecting individual experiences to a far greater degree than might be the case elsewhere. There is a further dimension to this. Among Gypsies the actions of one person are liable to impinge upon a neighbour. Benny (aged 30s) provided an example: Gypsy men on his site tended to be taken off by the police en masse if there was suspicion of a theft; if a non-Gypsy were involved in a crime, he wondered, would his whole street be arrested?

Epstein (1978) suggested that a distinguishing feature of minority group membership was the powerful emotional charge. Participants in this research have referred on many occasions to 'the Gypsy way' and to 'real Gypsies', as if some Gypsies were somehow less 'authentic' than others. There has often been in such cases an implicit sense of superiority, along with the intolerance of non-conformity noted by Liegeois (1986). Quite a few expressed feelings of shame about family members for becoming 'gadjefied'. Some equated this process with marrying non-Gypsies. While citing the rate of intermarriage in the UK, Eli expressed his contempt for Gypsy tree-surgeons who could not distinguish between deciduous and non-deciduous trees. The connection is significant: there is an inference that Gypsies have been weakened and their culture diluted through exposure to the non-Gypsy world, and in particular, through acceptance of non-Gypsy knowledge.

This leads us to the second point. While some participants were very positive about the possibilities offered by increased exposure to schools, others appeared to view Gypsy Masculinities and the knowledge gained at school with extreme suspicion. The alternative nature of Gypsy learning, both in terms of mode and content, has been summarised elsewhere (for example, Lee & Warren, 1991; Liegeois, 1987), and the 'discontinuities' (Resnick, 1987) between home and school-based learning inevitably lead to some confusion for Gypsy children in schools. It seems significant that in this study those who were most disparaging about education in schools, almost invariably, were male. Reasons given for a preference for Gypsy skills were often along the lines that 'Our skills are of greater use in the real world'. As Duke (aged 20s) summed it up: 'I can turn me 'and to anything'.  A typical comment was that when the world came to an end, 'there'll be bugger-all else to do for the Gadje but come and ask the Rom how to do everything'. A further point here is that the acquisition of such practical skills is connected to social relationships with other males. Males of all ages spoke with pride of going out to learn trades and skills with older males. Work done in isolation was commonly viewed with mistrust. Terry (aged 11) could not understand why his teacher at school had asked him to do some work on his own. Young men spoke of a sense of liberation when going out to work with fathers, uncles and old brothers, where 'we get treated as equals' (Joel, aged 16). In contrast, boys of primary as well as secondary age complained about being treated like 'babies' and learning 'fuck-all' at school.

Above all, Gypsy learning is about survival. Importantly, this kind of learning is deemed to take place at home rather than in school. Furthermore, much gypsy learning is perceived to be about tough, male skills. Tom (aged 60) complained that the only thing his youngest son had learned at school was how to be disrespectful: 'Henry never used to answer back; if he stepped out of line, he knew what was coming. You should hear him now. Like a bleeding lawyer ... with all his long words. Taught him to speak like a puff they have'.

Similar comments were made on numerous occasions by older males. Schools, it would appear, are seen as inculcating boys with an altogether less masculine identity. At best, much of the curriculum is viewed as irrelevant. There is an old Gypsy saying: 'Get an education and lose your mind'. Gheorghe's (1997) description of the 'predicament' of the educated Gypsy is reflected in the following exchange between Ian Hancock and Eli Frankham at an International Conference on Romani Studies, in 1996, during which Ian, as a Gypsy academic, evidently felt the need to defend his Romani identity by emphasising his knowledge of traditional skills:

DISCUSSION

This article has highlighted some of the tensions and contradictions Gypsy boys and men experience in performing specific forms of masculinity in different communities of practice. These tensions arise because the characteristics of these performances are valued differently in schools when compared with Gypsy families and communities. It is in the latter that their masculine practices (e.g. fighting) and identities are constructed, confirmed, and valued, and it is here that they experience meaningful and authentic engagement. Therefore, even though the evidence gathered in the course of this study suggests that changes of lifestyle among Gypsy groups are leading to more variable and fluid patterns than had previously existed, it remains the case that deprecatory and antagonistic attitudes towards the education system remain deeply entrenched among Gypsy males.

Overall, it would appear that alternative gender roles and identities propagated within the school environment are often perceived as a threat to cultural tradition and, in some cases, as a means by which acculturation, integration or even assimilation might be expedited. A large number of parents interviewed during the course of this research cited their apprehensions that their children may be exposed to value systems deemed to be incongruent with (and/or aggressive towards) their own as a reason for keeping their children at home. In particular, they expressed concern that schools encourage patterns that conflict with expectations within Gypsy communities. Of particular salience here are roles and identities at home and work, family relationships and sexual morals.

It would be misleading to assume from the criticisms made by many children of alternative values at school that the home model of the family comes through virtually intact. Among some participants there was evidence of confusion and unhappiness. There was also the impression that some families felt themselves to be caught up in a state of flux. However, this is by no means a uniquely contemporary phenomenon. The impression conveyed by many participants is that different types of roles and gender identity have evolved as a consequence of changing lifestyles over the past few decades. Economic circumstances over a period of time have resulted in a seemingly inexorable decrease of opportunity, not only in terms of work opportunities for males in specific areas, such as scrap-dealing, but also for long-established female activities, such as selling traditional artefacts and fortune-telling. However, the evidence gathered in this study suggested that males were encountering greater difficulties in adaptation.

The decline in agricultural work, a drift towards urban centres, along with an increase of numbers living in settled homes, have resulted in the need for re-evaluation and relocation with respect to gender roles and identities. While reduced openings for money-making activities have led to some disempowerment among women, more intimate contact with the non-Gypsy milieu, not least through engagement with the education system, has led to a growing awareness of inequities and, at times, a sense of exploitation. Moreover, the widening of aspiration among many younger women constitutes a challenge to both structural patterns and value-systems that have underpinned both family and communal life.

If educational experience is viewed by a growing number of Gypsy females, in some ways at least, as empowering, the evidence provided in this article suggests the same is not true in the case of Gypsy males. In general, males placed much emphasis on the acquisition of status within their own group, and younger males tended to select the same areas as being crucial to the acquisition of prestige and respect as those chosen by fathers and grandfathers: business skills, physical strength, fighting, and sexual prowess. In different ways, all of these were seen to have an important social function, not only cementing relationships, but defining wider alliances and hierarchies. In general, despite changing patterns, family and group loyalties appeared to remain of far greater overall importance to the boys involved in this study than the possibility offered to individuals through the education system of the attainment of wider aspirations.

The manner in which many boys in this study rejected school-based learning, codes and values recalls Willis' (1977) account of strategies employed by alienated, working-class boys in schools by which alternative hierarchies were constructed to protect status and sense of self. Once again, school-sanctioned learning was often perceived to be irrelevant, and useful knowledge/skills for future jobs was perceived as consisting of physical/active labour, as distinct from mental/theoretical labour. In Willis' study, such learning was also bound up with working-class identities. There are two elements here: first, the power relationships between masculinities, and second, the power struggle occurring between marginalised male students and schools and the central role of schools in the formation of specific masculinities (see also Connell, 1987, 1989).

It would be misleading to act as if such patterns occurred in a vacuum; social antagonisms and divisions external to schools inevitably play a part in shaping behaviour, and resistance to values and attitudes of teachers, for example, cannot be separated from strategies aimed at self-protection that are directed against the dominant group. The particular ways in which young black males construct alternative hierarchies (see, for example, Mac An Ghaill, 1994; Sewell, 1997) highlight the need to explore the cultural dimensions of such processes. Moreover, it is important to consider the internal manifestations of any power struggle, for neither culture nor identity are static. On the contrary, they are shaped by dynamic, fluid, contingent forces intersecting to form

ever-shifting mosaics. Writing of conscious hybridisation and narratives of self, Rassool (1999) portrayed culture among Asian youngsters as malleable and part of the act of social survival, but such models regarding identity that imply a facility to move smoothly between identities according to context would not seem to be reflected in the attitudes of most of those involved in our own research (see also Bhabha, 1994).

Connell (1995) has proposed that life histories can display diverging trajectories from substantially similar starting points and that this opens up the possibility of divergent masculinities being constructed. What seems striking in our own study is that, despite radical changes of lifestyle in recent years, male participants, with a few notable exceptions, expressed a relative uniformity of attitude. Among most, there remained a suspicion not only of the skills gained through exposure to the education system, but of values and attitudes that threatened traditional, masculine identities. To a great degree, this might merely reflect the way in which Romani society locates itself, in a manner that allows little freedom for deviation. As Liegeois comments: 'The Gypsy identity ... has been able to resist the vagaries of history. Gypsies who challenge it with deviant action tend to vanish into gadzo society and are obliterated from memory. Life-style is the key to the cohesion and survival of Gypsy society' (1986, p. 85). This cultural press towards conformity does not negate the possibility of individual or group change. However, the processes by which this occurs require further investigation.

ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE:

Martin P. Levinson,

School of Education and Lifelong Learning, University of Exeter, St. Luke's Campus,

Heavitree Road, EXETER. EX1 2LU. United Kingdom.

Email: m.p.levinson@exeter.ac.uk

and

Andrew C. Sparkes,

Qualitative Research Unit, School of Sport & Health Sciences, University of Exeter, St Luke's Campus, Heavitree Road, EXETER. EX1 2LU. United Kingdom.

Email: a.c.sparkes@exeter.ac.uk

NOTES

[1] We have used the term 'Gypsy' in this paper in preference to 'Traveller', the term used, in general, by those working in the field. Both terms have their own connotations. Liegeois (1986) rejected 'Traveller' and 'nomad' on the grounds that, by avoiding any ethnic content, such labels deny the existence of a specifically Gypsy culture. Our decision here is determined to a large degree by participants' choices; although these varied, many preferred the term 'Gypsy', often on the grounds that it distinguished them from 'New Age' or 'New' Travellers'. Some participants expressed a preference for the terms 'Rom' or 'Roma', although these themselves are terms that carry different meanings to different groups. The term for non-Gypsies used in the article-'Gadjo' (singular) 'Gadje' (plural)-and used by many participants here as both singular and plural, also found in different spellings elsewhere (e.g. 'Gorgio', 'Gauje', 'Gadze') tends to have pejorative connotations.

[2] The role of fieldworkers concerned the educational and, in some cases, the wider social welfare of children from Traveller families.

[3] All names used in this article are pseudonyms except in cases where the adult participants (older than 18 years of age) specifically requested that their real names be included.

[4] Similar findings were reported among quite different ethnic groups by Epstein et al. (2001).

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