MOISTURIZED MASCULINITY - WEAPONS GRADE VANITY

"Beauty is a form of genius-- is higher, indeed, than genius , as it needs no explanation…" Oscar Wilde

For today's generation, social media, selflies and porn are the major vectors  of the male desire to be desired. They want to be wanted for their bodies, not their wardrobe anymore. And certainly not their minds.

Some men, sometimes feel ostracised by this new generation of men in a  society that seemingly values pecs over PhD, and hyper sexuality over, say, a good reputation  . Please note, There's taking pride in your appearance , and there's this sort of weapons- grade vanity.

As has been said of late, that " after the clothes come the body " we all used to be simple blokes going about first in pursuit of scholarly excellence, then the pursuit of affection and finally the purpose. A whole lot has changed in-between, but the core should remain. Those were the days when men particularly vital statistics, as it used to be 36-24-36 for svelte beauties. These days the fashion industries has raised the bar to a certain "size zero". Raising a gene ratio of pressured anorexics on one hand  and yet another sucked into the other extreme of the body enhancement surgeries some are at the mercy of the famed surgeon in the wealthy suburb of Beverly hills (with the 90210 zip code)

I started investigating this new trend of men getting Pumped-up. Whatever you call it, it's a certain type

of "fit" , all about having abs , looking like a fitness model and trying to intimidate the rest of us.It's become the enthusiastic pursuit of a physical aesthetic and, particularly , the documenting of their body building achievements via ever available social media outlet, which now feels a bit vulgar for most parts

So this tendency towards buffness has become a cultural phenomenon of this age as defined by author and journalist Mark Simpson as "Spornosexuality". The term, denoting men who strive to look like sportsmen or porn stars, easily identified by tattoos , piercings, adorable beards and plunging necklines . it's eye- catching clear that for this group its less about clothes. They are convinced that there's no shirt, jacket or pair of shoes you could wear that gets as much reaction as a six  pack. Their own bodies have become an ultimate accessory. Fashioning them at the gym into a hot commodity - one that they share at a marketplace. This behaviour poorly depicts the next stage in masculine evolution.

"Some men, sometimes feel ostracised by this new generation of men in a  society that seemingly values pecs over PhD, and hypersexuality over, say, a good reputation"

Simpson first began writing about the : "sporno" culture in 2006, noting " The rise in the Hyper sexualised, Homo provocative imagery of sportsmen like David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo. Like Dolce and Gabbana's fashion shoots featuring the Italian National Football team in the shower in 2006 . This concept appeared as one of New York Times ' 2006 Ideas of the  year. Finally in 2014, Simpson pronounced the emergence of the "Spornosexuals". A certain writer Clive Martin in Vice magazine , described this group " as an section in a vest". A walking, preening monument to the British masculinity crisis"

Here's a note to the rest of us, probably out of shape maybe Not fat-fat, but a deeply unremarkable, weak, soft and shapeless frame with a career involving zero physical excretion. a rapidly expanding and contracting waistline, showing your preference for a glass of beer instead of gin and sliced lemon. Please don't allow this 'Sporno" culture put further pressure on , by requiring you to tick their boxes(i.e.)looking groomed, smelling good, or dressing exclusively in branded clothing and also adhere to a specific physical ideal. An improbable, sporty, porny, ripped-to-shit ideal, suggesting that men are increasingly beholden to the same unrealistic body expectations that have long plagued our women, with the abdominal “V-line” becoming as fetishised as the female “thigh gap”.

"So this tendency towards buffness has become a cultural phenomenon of this age as defined by author and journalist Mark Simpson as "Spornosexuality"."

I heard it took Daniel Craig till his 4th instalment of 007 to finally cut the “sporno” look, so take your time mate,  go at your pace, a weekly bowl of Spaghetti and Cheddar or double layered Poundo with extra cow tail never killed any man , go ahead, uphold a counter culture.  For a recent  Mintel report suggested that “women now see only the extremely image-conscious and product-consuming men around them – or in bed with them.” also implying that the glistening pecs and abs as seen in men’s health and fitness magazines are fast  becoming more appealing to men as interests in other magazines like  T3 and STUFF  has been on a decline for some years now.

All hope is not lost however, as We're seeing this group of “Sporno” men occupy previously 'feminine' spaces in the home - spending more time on housework, homework and parenting - but also as smart consumers, embracing Godliness, beauty products, and the act of cooking and care itself.

On a final note, the vainest of us should  not be the model for manliness. GENIUS, CHIVALRY and HONOUR must remain the hallmark of Masculinity. I get it that we all want to be attractive and desired, but after the bees land on the honeycomb, what else would they find? certainly after the body must come some intellect, skill (even DIY) and character. We MUST value genius above beauty Mr. Oscar Wilde!


Written by Ciro