In his undeserving arrogance he looses everything that defines him as a man. In the film To Live we view as a young man transverses life and experiences male responsibility in a time of social delinquency. With Fugui's life we see that it is possible that we are simply a participant in life, a life which will pass us by in a second if we look away. In To Live along with Tiger Killers, A Moment of Romance, and Butcher's Wife we see men struggling to define and assemble their masculine responsibility. While the antiheros of these stories are finding themselves they are all assisted in some way or another by a strong feminine influence. In this essay we will examine the masculine responsibility in To Live and how it is also found in the other stories. Also we will look at how each of these men has a woman by his side that helps to define him.
             In To Live we have a man who in the beginning takes everything he has completely for granted. His masculinity was handed to him by his ancestors but not assured. In his undeserving arrogance he looses everything that defines him as a man. His lover leaves him, his father dies knowing his heir is a failure to the family. Throughout the story we see that it is not the choices your make necessarily but how you handle them. How responsible you act with what you are given. Fugui gambles his family fortune away and looses everything for a time, but in the end he would have died for being a bourgeoisie. His friend kills his only son, but with that life debt Fugui is able to save his friends life. As the story goes we watch as Fugui grows and catalyses his masculine responsibility.
             A question poses itself regarding this masculinity: To what or whom is this responsibility directed? Is it himself, his loved ones, the other men, or his values? What do men do to prove they are responsible, and does this make them complete and happy? Fugui begins with no sense of responsibility ...