# Why Do Men Shave Their Beards? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 4, 2003, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476 "2003-04-04T15:49:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![X\_Slayer\_ALE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/bbe5ce/32.png) [@X\_Slayer\_ALE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/X_Slayer_ALE)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/21 "2003-04-05T00:22:27Z")
Not having the ability to grow facial hair, I wouldnt know. I do have to shave the pitiful hairs on my upper lip because it looks horrible if I let it grow out (uneven, scraggly, itchy as heck) and my wife doesnt like it unless its clean shaven and no I dont have a _lover that would nuzzle me and coo while stroking my freshly shaven face_ …wife has problems wit it. just to hijack this thread… Why do women shave their armpits? ---
**Author:** ![Skarlett244](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Skarlett244](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skarlett244)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/22 "2003-04-05T00:28:00Z")
Long beards can get damp in snow and rainy weather, which is a turn-off. That 3-day look is the pits. Worse than sandpaper! ---
**Author:** ![raisinbread](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8491ac/32.png) [@raisinbread](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raisinbread)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/23 "2003-04-05T00:32:27Z")
I am surprised at the people who go on about how beards are uncomfortable, itchy and filthy. I have no such problems with my beard nor do my numerous bearded compatriots. Being a naïve soul I always figured men shaved because they were whipped (to put it bluntly) but later on I learned that it was done out of vanity in hopes of appearing younger. Plus if people have sensitive skin that’s irritated by facial hair why, if their skin is so sensitive, would they drag a sharpened piece of steel against their epidermis at least once a day then dry it out with scented alcohol? Plus rugburn is a _temporary_ problem. Let it grow out for a week and that sandpaper will become soft. I only bemoan the fact that I can’t grow out my beard like Gimli or ZZ Top to match my long hair. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/24 "2003-04-05T00:38:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Purd Werfect \* > \*\*My skin goes nuts. Otherwise, I’d probably have a beard. As it is, I shave about once per week. Any longer, and the annoyance starts in earnest. \*\* Same here. If I don’t shave at least once a week my stubble will itch like hell. As it is, my whiskers stop growing at a quarter of an inch. Funny, I can grow a mustache but not a beard. I tend to shave three times a week so I don’t look like a bum and only shave my mustache when I visit my parents. ---
**Author:** ![DeVena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dec6dc/32.png) [@DeVena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeVena)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/25 "2003-04-05T02:58:10Z")
Why shave underarms? 1. cleaner 2. stubble itches 3. cause that’s what our mom’s did ---
**Author:** ![TheFunkySpaceCowboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a9a28c/32.png) [@TheFunkySpaceCowboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheFunkySpaceCowboy)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/26 "2003-04-05T03:02:13Z")
I shave because any beard I could grow would look really stupid. It grows at different speeds on different parts of my face. Comes in fast on my cheeks and under my chin, much slower (and thinner) nearer to my mouth and not at all on my upper lip. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/27 "2003-04-05T03:34:54Z")
I’ve had a beard most of my adult life. My wife has never seen me without it. I keep it trimmed to 1/4"-1/2", which requires trimming a couple of spots several times a week as they grow faster. I shave my neck and a few other spots with an electric razor - have never regularly shaved with a blade. My beard was always lighter than my hair. Top of head, dark brown with some reddish. Beard, lessee…blond, white, grey (even in my early 20’s), black, dark brown, red…gee, the entire human spectrum of color is(was) in my beard! But sadly, I’m only 40 and it’s almost totally grey on the sides now. ---
**Author:** ![betenoir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/258eb7/32.png) [@betenoir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betenoir)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/28 "2003-04-05T03:46:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Surreal \* > \*\*Who was it that decided that all men must take a razor to our faces every day and scrape off all of the little hairs that have grown there, only to have them grow back within a few hours so that we can repeat the whole process again the next day? \*\* I think it was the ancient Romans. Who may have got it fromt the ancienct Greeks, who amy have got it from the ancienct Egyptians. Anyway, it was a new (at the time) cultural practice designed to say you were “clean” and “civilized”. And which, as has been pointed out, has ben coming in and out of favor ever since. \*\* [QUOTE} If you were to add up the amount of time the average man wastes in his lifetime performing this pointless ritual, it would amount to several months. \*\*[/QUOTE] If I were to add up the amount of time women are asked to spend it pointess(and painful) gromming rituals, it would be a lot more than several mounths a lifetime. But then I might reflect that (althought this is a pretty recent deveoplment) we are not actually REQUIRED to do any of those rituals. But then I might refelect that guys these days are not actually REQUIRED to shave. So if it bothers you, don’t. \*\* > [@](#): > > Why do we do it? Are we going for the pre-pubescent look here?? > > It doesn’t make sense that so many guys go to the gym to build their muscles to make themselves appear more masculine, only to shave off their facial hair to make themselves look more feminine. Why bother? > > Thanks. \*\* Why does cutting off the hair that grows natually fom a man’s face make him look more feminie, but cutting off the hair that grows naturally from a man’s head (into say, a crewcut, as opposed to a ponytail) make him look more masculine? Why am I feminine for letting the hair on my own head grow, but masculine if I don’t shave the hair that’s grown under my arms ever since I became a woman? Weird cultural happenstance! We’re all a victem to it! But at this cultural moment, we have a lot of options. So like i said, if it pisses you off that much, stop shaving. ---
**Author:** ![DreadCthulhu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/db5fbb/32.png) [@DreadCthulhu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DreadCthulhu)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/29 "2003-04-05T05:41:31Z")
I shave because the Navy tells me too. That and my facial hair really itches when I go more than a couple days without shaving. ---
**Author:** ![Alcibiades](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/cab0a1/32.png) [@Alcibiades](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alcibiades)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/30 "2003-04-05T05:47:42Z")
1. It makes me look about 10 years older than I am. 2. It does get itchy when it starts to grow out. 3. Its ginger (my hair is dark brown). Having said all of that, I did grow a goatee on an extended holiday in Europe a few years back. When I shaved it off, I felt naked of a day or so. ---
**Author:** ![Omorka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/50afbb/32.png) [@Omorka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omorka)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/31 "2003-04-05T06:40:19Z")
A number of guys in my extended friend-circle shave because their beards would be patchy if they let them grow - some whiskers on the chin, lush sideburns, and scraggly everywhere else. Women shave their underarms because pit hair looks icky in sleeveless shirts, tank tops, or anything with sheer sleeves. Also, because women’s deodorants cause armpit hair to mat together in unpleasant ways. The former was the original reason. (If you live in a warm climate, it also cuts down some on sweat stains - not as much for the moisture to wick up - which is probably also a contributing factor to male facial shaving 'round here.) ---
**Author:** ![Zenster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/cdc98d/32.png) [@Zenster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zenster)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/32 "2003-04-05T07:30:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by betenoir \* > I think it was the ancient Romans. Who may have got it from the ancient Greeks, who may have got it from the ancient Egyptians. > Anyway, it was a new (at the time) cultural practice designed to say you were “clean” and “civilized.” {ANTI-BARBARIANS?} And which, as has been pointed out, has been coming in and out of favor ever since. > > > [@](#): > > > > If you were to add up the amount of time the average man wastes in his lifetime performing this pointless ritual, it would amount to several months. > > If I were to add up the amount of time women are asked to spend in pointless (and painful) grooming rituals, it would be a lot more than several months in a lifetime. > > But then I might reflect that (although this is a pretty recent development) we are not actually REQUIRED to do any of those rituals. > > But then I might reflect that guys these days are not actually REQUIRED to shave. > > So if it bothers you, don’t. > > Why does cutting off the hair that grows naturally from a man’s face make him look more feminine, but cutting off the hair that grows naturally from a man’s head (into say, a crewcut, as opposed to a ponytail) make him look more masculine? > > Why am I feminine for letting the hair on my own head grow, but masculine if I don’t shave the hair that’s grown under my arms ever since I became a woman? > > Weird cultural happenstance! We’re all a victim of it! > > But at this cultural moment, we have a lot of options. So like i said, if it pisses you off that much, stop shaving. Preach it! ---
**Author:** ![elfje](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19b73/32.png) [@elfje](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfje)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 9:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/33 "2003-04-05T09:06:30Z")
I’ve asked my boyfriend once, and he said he’s be too warm with a beard. he’s the kind of person that walks around in a shirt or T-shirt for 10 months of the year. the other 2 he obligingly puts on a jacket, but hardly ever zips it up. He’s never had a beard, and says that it itches terribly if he leaves it for more than one day. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/34 "2003-04-05T09:22:02Z")
I hate having a totally smooth face and if I grow my facial hair out, it grows out really scraggly and I wind up looking like I’m a bum, so I’m pretty much screwed. If I could somehow get my facial hair to stay at about a two day growth, I’d be happy. ---
**Author:** ![shep\_proudfoot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90db22/32.png) [@shep\_proudfoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shep_proudfoot)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/35 "2003-04-05T12:25:04Z")
The reasons I shave, 1. I don’t like beards (really mustaches) 2. My wife doesn’t like beards. 3. I feel dirty if I do not shave. Saying that, sometimes I let my face go for a couple of days, just to see myself with a beard. However, I am very blond and it takes a while to see. I loathe mustaches more than the lower facial hair, but it is really all or nothing when I shave it. I don’t even have sideburns, they look dumb too. As a side note, goatees are really stupid looking. Dude your mouth looks like a sideways female sexual organ! SP ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/36 "2003-04-05T12:36:47Z")
Beardy-weirdy here. I suffer from ingrown hairs terribly if I shave, so having the beard is a mercy for me. Plus I’m a low-maintenance kind of guy anyway. Fortunately, the spouse prefers the beard and gets annoyed when I trim it shorter in the summer. I’ve never tried a goatee, but as some comedian once said, “People with goatees look like they’ve been hit in the mouth with a dusty tennis ball.” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Mudling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5fc32e/32.png) [@Mudling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mudling)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/37 "2003-04-05T14:43:57Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Surreal \* > **Why Do Men Shave Their Beards?** The question I would be asking would be is why WOULDN’T men shave their beards? I find facial hair quite disgusting. We are not living in prehistoric times now, please gentlemen, groom yourselves! One of the most disturbing things you could see is someone with a beard eating or drinking. _shudder_ ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/38 "2003-04-05T15:32:19Z")
If that’s the most disturbing thing _you’ve_ seen, you’ve lived a sheltered life. Of course, if you find giant red oozing facial welts preferable to neatly trimmed facial hair, I’ll go shave and pop over to your place for dinner. What time do you normally eat? ---
**Author:** ![groo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ecd19e/32.png) [@groo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/groo)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/39 "2003-04-05T16:16:00Z")
What **Attrayant** and **godzillatemple** said. In my experience, you can kiss a woman a few times with stubble or a beard, but if you’re engaged in tire-screeching, plaster-raining-down, civilization-crumbling sex, you’re talking serious rug burns. A beard isn’t as abraisive as stubble, but (for the brief time I had a beard) I got complaints from my then-SO about tickling her thighs. ---
**Author:** ![Foolonthehill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e274bd/32.png) [@Foolonthehill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Foolonthehill)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2003, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476/40 "2003-04-05T16:42:38Z")
“Razors” have been found in caves occupied by homo Sapiens 25,000 yrs. ago in Europe. Shaving keeps the parasites living on your head down to a minimum, and in winter, while face hair may keep you slightly warmer, water freezes to your beard, very uncomfortable. We are also pretty sure that early man cut their head hair fairly short in both sexes, again parasites. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-men-shave-their-beards/166476.md?page=3)