# Why are American men generally more manly than European men? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 21, 2013, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563 "2013-06-21T16:30:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Sr\_Siete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6de8d8/32.png) [@Sr\_Siete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sr_Siete)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/61 "2013-06-22T06:06:44Z")
While there are, of course, endless exceptions to that generalization (You could argue that some of Hollywood’s manliest action heros are Brits like Jason Statham or Gerard Butler, while american Hollywood stars tend to be… Leonardo DiCaprio or Tom Cruise, for instance) it’s true that the cultural narratives of the 20th century were shaped differently. Americans had the cowboy myths, Europeans brought unmanly, upper class heroes, like Sherlock Holmes. in a way, American culture flaunted its contempt for the perceived bourgeois values of the Europeans and the divide between classes it caused, a divide that we Euros have started getting over in relatively recent, post WWII times. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/62 "2013-06-22T06:29:59Z")
> [@Kimmy\_Gibbler](#): > > I wonder what they thought of the obese tourist in a sleeveless t-shirt and with Yosemite Sam tattoos showing. My guess? Rhymes with “bright brash”… Who would that be? I’m neither obese nor did I wear sleeveless shirts while I was there. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/63 "2013-06-22T06:32:21Z")
> [@RobDog](#): > > Well you’re no Bert Trautmann. Pah! lightweight. His neck wasn’t _completely_ broken, plus I reckon his performance dipped a bit for the rest of the game. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 6:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/64 "2013-06-22T06:55:53Z")
A dude from Madrid once asked me how come there are so many famous male Basque cooks. I said, because up there men are expected to cook; even my brother who by local standards “doesn’t cook” is perfectly able to feed a family properly for a week. He said “but cooking is woman’s work!”. I said “taking care of a family is adult person’s work. You think a man who can cook is a wimp; we think a man who cannot take care of his family is a wimp. And yes, I just called you a wimp.” Like several others have said, it’s a matter of cultural standards, and those aren’t universal. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/65 "2013-06-22T08:02:32Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > I hear there’s a whole country full of men who speak _French_?! :eek: > > What bar-goin’, beer-swillin’, pickemup-drivin’ manly-man would admit to speaking French?! You’ve obviously never been to Quebec! > [@Jackmannii](#): > > Hell boy, after you git done with that there appetizer, come on over and we’ll barbecue a whole steer. Shot it dead and drug it home with mah F-150. You shoot things with your F-150? I just run them over. > [@Gatopescado](#): > > _Fuck_ the Ford F-150! > > I drive an **F-250!** 😃 > > (and a Fiat) do you keep the Fiat in the back of the F-250? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![stui\_magpie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stui_magpie/32/11010_2.png) [@stui\_magpie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stui_magpie)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/66 "2013-06-22T08:45:48Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > Since when is soccer considered girly? Most guys I know admire soccer players for thier athletisism. Compared to Aussie Rules, Soccer is a game for pussies and whimps. The staging for free kicks is horrible. Personally can’t stand the game. Good exercise for kids maybe. However, the OP’s concept of masculinity seems rooted in the 1970’s. I like Chilli, I like Beer, I have owned guns…So? ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/67 "2013-06-22T09:13:00Z")
I think that it comes back to the old adage, Big car, small Dick. Anyone who’s so concerned about other peoples masculinity has …personal issues that he’s trying to resolve. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 9:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/68 "2013-06-22T09:50:09Z")
The OP forgot to cite the song “[Gay or European?](http://www.songlyrics.com/legally-blonde/there!-right-there!-lyrics/)” where the girls go on agonizing whether a guy they are seeing is a flamboyant gay man, or just European. In fact, this joke shows up in a lot of American culture. So, all the posters here who are trying to pretend like this isn’t actually a thing, stop it. (turns out the guy was gay AND European) ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 10:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/69 "2013-06-22T10:04:30Z")
If by “isn’t a thing” you mean “doesn’t exist”, then I’m reasonably sure stupidity does exist. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 11:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/70 "2013-06-22T11:03:54Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > So, all the posters here who are trying to pretend like this isn’t actually a thing, stop it. > ) If you mean that USA culture has a very curious perception of sex and sexuality then…you are very right, that is a thing but I don’t think anyone would suggest otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![stui\_magpie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stui_magpie/32/11010_2.png) [@stui\_magpie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stui_magpie)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/71 "2013-06-22T12:15:40Z")
> [@drewtwo99](#): > > (turns out the guy was gay AND European) If he was Gay and french does that make him a frag? {hangs head in shame} ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/72 "2013-06-22T12:20:13Z")
Hahaha, a frag. 😃 That’s terrible. As a gay man, I approve of that joke. This OP is so hilarious though I just love it. The panini bit got me most I think. ---
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/73 "2013-06-22T12:22:46Z")
Right that’s it stui, no croissants for you ! Go and put your big shoes on, and pretend to be John Wayne ! I’m sorry, you asked for it ! ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/74 "2013-06-22T13:03:11Z")
I agree with the OP. All real men are American men. Like me, I have an F-150 and a little sports car, a Mustang GT. I eat rocks for breakfast, and I’ll shoot anyone who looks at me funny. ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/75 "2013-06-22T13:09:38Z")
> [@Max\_the\_Immortal](#): > > Baseball is manly? Explain. Yeah, isn’t it pretty much what we in the UK call rounders? A game not played by anyone over the age of 12? Anyway, must dash, I’m out of lapsang souchong. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/76 "2013-06-22T13:12:33Z")
> [@Filbert](#): > > Yeah, isn’t it pretty much what we in the UK call rounders? A game not played by anyone over the age of 12? > > Anyway, must dash, I’m out of lapsang souchong. Baseball is manly sport because it involves chewing tobacco, spitting, ball scratching, no crying, and women aren’t allowed to play. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/77 "2013-06-22T16:35:03Z")
One of the earlier literary references to a game called “baseball” can be found in Jane Austen’s _Northanger Abbey_.\* The heroine, Catherine, is described as having been fond of playing baseball as a child. What could be more manly than a sport played by little girls in Jane Austen novels? \*Mostly written around 1799, although not published until after Austen’s death in 1817. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/78 "2013-06-22T16:37:45Z")
There is a difference between ‘baseball’, a game that women, girls, and children can enjoy playing, and ‘Baseball’, which is a manly profession for manly men. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/79 "2013-06-22T17:36:12Z")
> [@Sr\_Siete](#): > > You could argue that some of Hollywood’s manliest action heros are Brits like Jason Statham or Gerard Butler, while american Hollywood stars tend to be… Leonardo DiCaprio or Tom Cruise, for instance _“If you let my daughter go now, that’ll be the end of it. I will not look for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don’t, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you.”_ Said the man who hunts wolves with his fists. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2013, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563/80 "2013-06-22T19:36:16Z")
Baseball is a game where a man 60 feet away from you throws a deadly round object at 95 MPH inches from your head/body. Sounds kinda manly to me. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-american-men-generally-more-manly-than-european-men/661563.md?page=5)