Monday, August 29, 2011

Men and Hair

I'm pretty sure most ladies will agree with Hugh Jackman being sexy. Well check the next pic.

It has been known for quite sometime that men, on average, are hairier than women. In fact, throughout history, hair in many instances, especially in Europe, was a sign of manliness,maturity, and wisdom...and, at times, barbarianism (as in the modern definition suggesting that one is uncivilized, not simply bearded). Now it would be false to suggest that hairiness has always been in fashion, because indeed such has not been the case. Take, for instance, Russia under the reign of Peter the Great who, in the late 1600's, decreed that all men in Russia were to shave their beards. In fact, so strict was Peter with his decree that it has been stated that he personally cut nobles' beards. Of course this reasoning had a lot to do with losing wars to the West, concepts of what it meant to be "progressive" and "civilized", etc., but it is telling that it took the decree of the tzar to get men to shave their beards.


Yes, that's right, he's got a bear cub clinging to his chest, and it ain't letting go.

Fast-forward to 21st Century, and not only are men shaving their faces regularly, but, more to the point, they are also shaving other parts of their body. Chief among these areas being shaven is the chest.

Now in some populations men naturally have little to no body hair (Ex. - Many East Asian populations, many Sub-Saharan African populations, and many Native American populations), but among populations that do, specifically Western and Northern Europeans, there is an increasing trend, at least in the States and Canada, of males having baby smooth abs and chests completely void of hair. Now I am not personally against this trend, and, admittedly, I am among the number of men that do like not feeling like I'm walking around with a bear cub strapped to my chest. However, I also realized that this mindset may actually be culturally induced and I'm just following the trend in order to fit into the social and cultural norms of the society in which I live.

So the question then becomes, why do hairy men shave their chest and other parts of their bodies? Is it simply because of the society and cultural values of the nation/state in which they live? Is it due to preferences of their partner or partners? Is it simply because men now feel more free to present themselves how they wish in a society that, while still maintaining some strict gender/sex-binary stereotypes, has loosened its hold somewhat on how people are allowed to express themselves? Or could it simply be that having a metaphorical bear skin rug on your body gets a little old after awhile?

This also extends to facial hair. I've noticed that very few men, at least in professional settings, tend to grow full beards or sport stubble lined faces. I, myself, have sported both and noticed that there appears to be a presumption among many that you are either unclean, lazy, or simply look unprofessional. Now of course this could just be me, and my face might not be suited for more than a goatee. I don't know, and any opinions or experiences would definitely help to clarify what the chief cause may be concerning why most men regularly shave their faces.


The preferred look?

Now I leave you with a set of statistics gleaned from everyone's favorite and trust worthy information source Wikipedia!

There have been occasional studies documenting patterns of chest hair in men and occurrence of these patterns. A study of 1100 men aged 17 to 71 defined and documented ten patterns of chest hair in Caucasoid men. In this study 6 percent of the men were found to have no chest hair. The largest group, 56 percent, displayed pattern four as shown in the accompanying figure. The remaining 38 percent of the men displayed a lesser quantity of chest hair. Seven percent displayed pattern one, 13 percent displayed pattern two and 18 percent displayed various other patterns.[citation needed]

The same study documented the chest hair patterns of 60 African-American men aged 20-40. For these men 22 percent were found to have no chest hair. The largest group, 37 percent displayed pattern four and the remaining 41 percent had a lesser quantity of chest hair. Eight percent displayed pattern one, 12 percent pattern two and 11 percent displayed various other patterns.[1][2]


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chest_hair

8 comments:

  1. Ah, men and their chest hair. I used to hate it, you know, when I was a teen.

    But if you ask me now, I'm one of those people who prefer natural look, and if a guy is hairy, he's hairy. There's nothing wrong about that.

    (Except, maybe, one thing, but this might be just correlation: men with strong beard and chest/body hair often have thin hair and start to lose hair early. And there's nothing I like more on a man than beautiful hair).

    But, seriously, no man should wax his chest. It's your body hair and you shouldn't think you're less attractive than a waxed guy. (Unless the hair itself creates some problems for the guy, but I don't see how it can be). Plus, waxing is painful, and there's no need for them to go through this.

    And yes, one of the reasons I'm attracted to non-white men is that they're often less hairy than the whites, but it's hardly a dealbreaker.

    Plus, now that I'm more mature (ugh, it makes me seem old), I find a bit of chest hair sexy. Still, what I find attractive is natural look, whatever that may be.

    As for your examples, I'm not crazy about Hugh Jackman (regardless of chest hair). Lee Byung hun, I don't mind that he's hairless, but he's too muscular for my taste (now that I think about it, so is Hugh Jackman). So I think I pay more attention to muscles (or lack thereof, which I consider better) than the chest hair).


    PS- Oh, and btw, men should never (never, never, never) shave/wax their "happy trail" (is that how it's called?): it's incredibly sexy. And they should also avoid removing their pubic hair.

    ReplyDelete
  2. But if you ask me now, I'm one of those people who prefer natural look, and if a guy is hairy, he's hairy. There's nothing wrong about that.

    Really? So allow me to ask you, if you will, what you would think if you never knew that the guy, we can assume he's rather hairy, shaved his chest? Would you be a bit disappointed if you ever found out? More specifically, if you thought you were with a guy who didn't have much body hair, but it turned out that he shaved/waxed do you think you could still tolerate his hairiness if he were to grow his hair again?

    Except, maybe, one thing, but this might be just correlation: men with strong beard and chest/body hair often have thin hair and start to lose hair early. And there's nothing I like more on a man than beautiful hair

    Hm...that is curious.

    This: But, seriously, no man should wax his chest. It's your body hair and you shouldn't think you're less attractive than a waxed guy. (Unless the hair itself creates some problems for the guy, but I don't see how it can be). Plus, waxing is painful, and there's no need for them to go through this.

    Followed by this:
    And yes, one of the reasons I'm attracted to non-white men is that they're often less hairy than the whites, but it's hardly a dealbreaker.


    = Me Dead.

    lol. Seriously Mira, I'm sure most women have a preference for little to no hair on their men (excluding head and facial hair). In fact I would be tempted to weakly relate it to women and the shaving of leg hair. Somethings just aren't that sexy to the opposite sex, so I personally see no problem with a making a few adjustments in order to address those issues.

    Now I'm sure that things are probably different with women, but as I a guy I know that I'm not really into women with copious amounts of leg hair. In understanding that, I also understand that women, as a rule, aren't really into guys with a lot of chest or body hair. So if shaving or waxing my chest hair is what is needed I have no problem doing so. The fact of the matter is that, at the end of the day, chest hair, at least a lot of it, just isn't sexy to a lot of women. So I'd be inclined to disagree with the fact that men with chest hair shouldn't feel/think they are less attractive; the fact of the matter is that, in many instances, they are.

    As for your examples, I'm not crazy about Hugh Jackman (regardless of chest hair). Lee Byung hun, I don't mind that he's hairless, but he's too muscular for my taste (now that I think about it, so is Hugh Jackman). So I think I pay more attention to muscles (or lack thereof, which I consider better) than the chest hair).

    Wow...a woman who's not into muscles? Is that even possible?

    PS- Oh, and btw, men should never (never, never, never) shave/wax their "happy trail" (is that how it's called?): it's incredibly sexy. And they should also avoid removing their pubic hair.

    "Happy trail", lol. Yeah, some people still call it that. And I'll keep your advice in mind. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ok, first of all, body hair is NEVER a dealbreaker (for me). So I guess it's just not that important.

    Really? So allow me to ask you, if you will, what you would think if you never knew that the guy, we can assume he's rather hairy, shaved his chest? Would you be a bit disappointed if you ever found out?

    I wouldn't be disappointed, but I'd feel bad about him thinking he has to do it in order to appear attractive. I'd also feel bad about him having to go through the pain of waxing, lol. But it wouldn't change his attractiveness in my eyes.

    More specifically, if you thought you were with a guy who didn't have much body hair, but it turned out that he shaved/waxed do you think you could still tolerate his hairiness if he were to grow his hair again?

    I wouldn't say I'd "tolerate" his hairiness, because it wouldn't bother me much (and keep in mind, I am not an active fan of body hair). If I'm in a relationship with a guy, I like him, all of him, and that includes his body hair. So I wouldn't mind him growing it. Plus, it would (somewhat) be a sign that he just doesn't care about what's considered attractive these days.

    Seriously Mira, I'm sure most women have a preference for little to no hair on their men (excluding head and facial hair).

    This is true. I am no different. I'm not a big fan of chest hair. Still, I like natural, "I don't want to bother" look, whatever that means. That's why I wouldn't want my man to remove his chest hair even if I find hairless chest more attractive. But I wouldn't think less of him if he decides to shave. Whatever makes him happy!

    In fact I would be tempted to weakly relate it to women and the shaving of leg hair.

    In a way, yes, but there are still many women who don't care about the amount of guy's chest hair, while I don't know any men who'd tolerate a woman with hairy legs or *gasp!* armpit hair.

    Maybe it's just my culture, that demands women to be as waxed/shaved as possible. People here are crazy about it, just like they're crazy about women being thin.

    So if shaving or waxing my chest hair is what is needed I have no problem doing so.

    Well, if a guy has serious problems finding a girl because of his body hair, or if people tease/ridicule him for it, then yes, I do think he should shave. Many women prefer confident men, and that's what this is really about.

    Wow...a woman who's not into muscles? Is that even possible?

    It's not that I strongly oppose to muscular men, and to be honest, I am not into anorexic or obese men either. It's just... To build muscles requires a lot of effort and it's often problematic for me, because of a few reasons:

    - It makes a person too focused on building muscles, and I'm generally more into men who are on the "I don't care how I look like" side.

    - Muscular and athletic men often want women who care about their bodies the same way. I am not that kind of a woman; I don't really work out and I guess I'm not in a great shape.

    Now, if a guy doesn't obsess about the workout, and if he doesn't care if I'm in the shape, then I don't mind him being muscular.

    "Happy trail", lol. Yeah, some people still call it that. And I'll keep your advice in mind. ;)

    I found the term at a gay website (don't ask why was I there! ;) ) and I had no idea what were they talking about. I had to do a Google search to find out what it was.

    So, what's a contemporary name for that kind of hair?

    In any case, it's sexy and shouldn't be removed.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I wouldn't say I'd "tolerate" his hairiness, because it wouldn't bother me much (and keep in mind, I am not an active fan of body hair). If I'm in a relationship with a guy, I like him, all of him, and that includes his body hair. So I wouldn't mind him growing it. Plus, it would (somewhat) be a sign that he just doesn't care about what's considered attractive these days.

    This is true. I am no different. I'm not a big fan of chest hair. Still, I like natural, "I don't want to bother" look, whatever that means. That's why I wouldn't want my man to remove his chest hair even if I find hairless chest more attractive. But I wouldn't think less of him if he decides to shave. Whatever makes him happy!

    Wow...you kinda make me feel bad. You're a lot less superficial than I am.

    In a way, yes, but there are still many women who don't care about the amount of guy's chest hair, while I don't know any men who'd tolerate a woman with hairy legs or *gasp!* armpit hair.

    Maybe it's just my culture, that demands women to be as waxed/shaved as possible. People here are crazy about it, just like they're crazy about women being thin.


    Nah, it's the same way in the states. Perhaps it's because of enculturation, but hairy legs is a pretty big turn off for me. Hairy armpits are actually cool, but I know most of the guys, at least that I've met, hate them as much as they hate hair legs.

    Preferences concerning the amount of body fat a woman has, however, differs among groups.

    Well, if a guy has serious problems finding a girl because of his body hair, or if people tease/ridicule him for it, then yes, I do think he should shave. Many women prefer confident men, and that's what this is really about.

    Lol! Maybe I'm making this seem like too much of an issue. The truth is, at least in my experience, most women are kind of like you when it comes to body hair. The only reason I get rid of it is due to the fact that a lot of the women I've dated just didn't like it; they didn't mind that I had it, but they preferred the hairless look. And I guess I just started one day and never stopped.

    It's not that I strongly oppose to muscular men, and to be honest, I am not into anorexic or obese men either. It's just... To build muscles requires a lot of effort and it's often problematic for me, because of a few reasons:

    - It makes a person too focused on building muscles, and I'm generally more into men who are on the "I don't care how I look like" side.

    - Muscular and athletic men often want women who care about their bodies the same way. I am not that kind of a woman; I don't really work out and I guess I'm not in a great shape.

    Now, if a guy doesn't obsess about the workout, and if he doesn't care if I'm in the shape, then I don't mind him being muscular.


    Yeah...well you broke that down pretty well, and all of it is pretty much true. Not much more to say to that.

    I found the term at a gay website (don't ask why was I there! ;) ) and I had no idea what were they talking about. I had to do a Google search to find out what it was.

    So, what's a contemporary name for that kind of hair?

    In any case, it's sexy and shouldn't be removed.


    Oh come on! You can't tell me not ask why you were surfing that website! Damn teases...

    Anyway, "happy trail", at least as far as I know, is still the contemporary term. Although I'm thinking that "trail of smiles" is just cheesy enough to work. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wow...you kinda make me feel bad. You're a lot less superficial than I am.

    I don't think it's about being superficial. I guess I'm too aware of how exhausting it is to make your body fit the modern standards of hotness. There's a lot of work there, and a lot of rules that I don't understand. Usually, I don't bother much when it comes to it. So I guess I don't expect a guy to do it either.

    The truth is, at least in my experience, most women are kind of like you when it comes to body hair.

    Well, there you go. Chest hair is rarely a dealbreaker. I don't know any women who'd ignore a guy just because of his body hair. But I do know a lot of guys who'd ignore a girl with hairy legs/armpits, even pubic area.

    The only reason I get rid of it is due to the fact that a lot of the women I've dated just didn't like it; they didn't mind that I had it, but they preferred the hairless look. And I guess I just started one day and never stopped.

    Oh, you seem eager to please, and it's a good thing! ;) But seriously, if they didn't mind, why would you?

    Does that mean you don't know how much chest hair you have? It changes with age; you get more with age.

    Oh come on! You can't tell me not ask why you were surfing that website! Damn teases...

    Oh, ok. I was searching for images from the movie called I Come With the Rain (that stars Josh Hartnett and Lee Byung hun, of all people). The movie is... quite disturbing to say the least, but it's full of shirtless men. Anyway, there was one high resolution picture of (shirtless) Josh Hartnett posted on a gay website, whit the title: guess the happy trail (his face wasn't shown).

    Obviously, gays are crazy about Josh. I can't blame them.

    Here's the photo in question:

    http://www.chrisandphilpresent.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/ICome1.jpg

    The guy does have an incredible happy trail and not much chest hair (I wonder if he shaves...)

    Lee Byung hun was very hot in the movie (and shirtless most of the time). But the film was disturbing, despite the shirtless men. Still, it was interesting, I guess.

    ReplyDelete
  6. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  7. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  8. What happened? Hope everything's alright. :)

    ReplyDelete