Theroux said that at the age of thirteen when he wanted to meet girls, he was "told to take up a sport, get more fresh air, join the Boy Scouts, and urged not to read much" (Theroux, page 102). This was not a bad idea. Boys, at a stage, need to mature and going to camps and participating in camp activities like scouting, playing games and learning to interact with one another help them to mature. As a matter of fact, in some of these camps, instructors serve as father figures to boys who have no parents and this helps the boys mentally and psychologically. Most boys in such camps develop various professions which they later pursue in life. The manliness has to be proved in a way that will make the society accept the friendship of both men and women.
However, just as they learn positive things that help them mature as men, most of these boys also pick up bad behavior from such camps. Some of the boys see the camps as very relaxed, hung up with bad guys and involve themselves in negative activities like burgalry, pick-pocketing fighting and even rape. It can therefore be said that most criminals pick up their bad habits from such camps at a young age.
As Theroux rightly said, boys camps are not comfortable and pleasant places to go, but they are important as they serve as training grounds for positive activities.
Your analysis of exclusively male spaces, such as boy camps, is very interesting, and I like the fact that you include both positive and negative consequences of boys participating in such 'manly' activities. But what do you mean by "The manliness has to be proved in a way that will make the society accept the friendship of both men and women"? Also, you do not need the word page in parentheses; last name and page number is sufficient. Good in-text citation.
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