some things every man should know how to do

[lemiel14n3]

After clicking on a link from Manly Guys Doing Manly Things [http://thepunchlineismachismo.com/], to the site The Art of Manliness [http://artofmanliness.com/]. It got me thinking about men and the state of masculinity in modern America and society.

Alright, Fight Club discussion incoming. There used to be a very distinct role for men, as protectors, fighters, money makers. We had a dominant position over most aspects of society. With the increase in strength of the feminist movement, and the decrease in the necessity of some of the classic masculine roles. Men have begun drifting, we lack the definitive positions previously held to us, and we don't know what's left.
For more on a similar line of thought, just watch the GI Joe episode [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/the-big-picture/2582-A-Guy-Named-Joe] of the big picture.

So I'd like to consider some things that every man should know to hold on to that older masculine identity. Things we should be able to do, even if we never need to. So I'm going to start up the master list on this OP, arranged in no particular order. and ask everyone reading to consider their own masculine criterion, and post them, if I like it, I'll add it to the master list. Or if you don't like something say so, and I'll consider taking it off. Then I'll... I don't know, write a book or something.

Spoiler: because it needs to be said

Since so many of you brought it up, I figured I'd talk about it right here. I'm not saying that only men should have these skills. I'm not saying women aren't equally capable of performing everything on this list below (mostly because I declined to include things like "pee standing up") I am saying that men SHOULD, not that women CAN'T, please don't confuse the two.

Also

I am not out to define the male gender
My goal is not to make you feel like less of a man
These are not man-exclusive abilities
YES! the only definitive necessity of being a man is a penis
IF you can't do something, don't feel too bad, for some of these, in all likelihood, you'll never have to
No one is ever going to call you on these things
I can't do everything on this list either, but I feel I should, at least, get the basics down
Yeah, some of these abilities are really only useful to cavemen, but you'll be glad you know them if you ever need them.

Spoiler: In order to be a man you do not have to be this (although they are the basis for the list)

Spoiler: Now consider briefly an alternative to that image of men.

When I search "lazy" on Google every image that isn't a cat or a fictional character is a man.
Same with "idiot"
and "douche"
and "asshole"
maybe 75/25 with "drunk"

Think about commercials, men are marketed to as people who are too busy thinking with our dicks or our stomachs to begin thinking with our heads.

Look I'm not trying to say who you are or who you should be. I'm compiling a list of useful abilities that, in my opinion men should know. Does that mean you HAVE to know them? NO, does that mean women are incapable of performing these tasks? NO, am I going to think less of you for being unable to perform this list in it's entirety? NO, are you not a REAL man if you can't do these things, maybe a few decades ago the answer would have been yes, but now? NO

What I'm not adding: ideas and concepts, the more existential stuff (Like be a good husband, take care of your kids, be secure about ponies), Sex specific things (pee standing up), Things you learn as a child (tie your shoelaces), blatantly sexist things (unhook a bra, be good in bed), angry women things (don't be a chauvinistic ass), angry man things (Forge a definition of masculinity for himself not based on the opinions of others)


Things Every Man should be able to do

-Use basic tools (Axes, saws, hammers & nails, screw drivers, the basic tool kit)
-Build a fire [Owyn_Merrilin]
-Swim [loc978]
-Sharpen a knife [Owyn_Merrilin]
-Fish
-Hunt [Dr_Horrible]
-Gut a fish/skin an animal
-Ride a horse
-Pitch a tent
-Perform first aid, including CPR
-Cook a few easy recipes
-Operate a grill [AGrey]
-Know at least one good year for wine
-Build something (Not just restricted to wood work, being able to build a bureau from scratch and a computer from scratch are just as valid)(stacking planks on top of cinder blocks and calling them shelves does NOT count)
-Repair your possessions
-Sew [Sope]
-Know how to grow a decent garden
-Install/repair basic electric utilities [Cargin]
-Install/repair basic plumbing [Cargin]
-Change a light bulb [Spaloooooka]
-Fire a gun
-Throw a punch
-Take a punch (yes, this can be learned)
-Read (Yes, you should be literate, but also able to read a book and understand it's message and content)
-Read/watch the news [Da Chi]
-Read a manual [LadyMint]
-Clearly communicate an idea [gmergurl]
-Talk to others
-Talk to someone you're attracted to (not just cheesy one-liners)
-Know what they're talking about (Literature, art, music, history, politics) [Kukulski]
-Drink (Not to excess, but know your preferences and limits) (including whether you drink at all)
-Sing or play some kind of instrument (it doesn't matter if it's a kazoo or a violin, learn something)
-Dance
-Play Chess (just know how the pieces move, you don't need to be a grand master)
-Play poker [http://students.ou.edu/H/Samuel.F.Harper-Alonso-1/poker-hands.jpg]
-Drive a car (automatic and stick)
-Ride a motorcycle
-Operate a boat (canoe, yacht, sailboat) [loc978]
-Jump start a car
-Change a tire [Wadders]
-Change the oil [Athol]
-Clean yourself
-Clean your possessions ~[PettingZOOPONY]
-Shave [Armored Prayer]
-Tie a tie [http://siddiquem01.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/how-to-tie-a-tie.jpg] [Wadders]
-Wear a suit well
-Polish their shoes [Lord Kloo]
-Open a can/bottle [Irriduccibilli]
-Twist off a lid
-Pack a suitcase [Ledan]
-Pack a car [Ledan]

Spoiler: worthy of recognition, but doesn't fit into the list

Please their partner

Be a dedicated husband and father

Don't be a dick

Treat a woman properly

Be secure enough in who he is to watch a kid's cartoon about magical ponies?

Know how to control their anger/other emotions

admitting own mistakes

A real man is strong, but humble. Proud, but not arrogant. Civil and not disrespectful. Courageous, yet gentle. Firm, but understanding. Loyal and unshakable. A true man's values are made of honor, integrity, and love. He is inseparable with the Truth and will never compromise.

Be able to formulate, defend, and potentially alter an opinion.

In my opinion humans period require Integrity.
Males especially, Integrity is important. You should know how to keep your word, and you should value your word.

Resourcefulness. Being able to make use of whatever means are available to accomplish whatever task. But its also the ability to learn and teach yourself new things, the ability to find answers and solutions to problems

Communicate

kill bugs

Admit a mistake

A man should be able to stand up for what they believe in even in the face of opposition. But should also be willing to admit that they're wrong and learn from their mistakes.

Know when to walk away and know when to run

Be comfortable in their masculinity

And I confess, I like people showing what they can and cannot do, a little introspection is healthy.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

Well, you covered most of it, OP. I actually came in specifically intending to say "use an axe," because in my experience very few people know how to do that, even though they think they do; however, you covered it. I guess I'll add "sharpen a blade with a whetstone" to the list before someone ninja's me on that too

Edit: And split firewood. Every man should split firewood at least once in his life. It's kind of fun, once you learn the trick.

Edit edit: Also, build a fire without resorting to lighter fluid or paper, and assuming he lives in the Southern US, make skewers for roasting things over a fire out of palmetto stems. Those things make such good skewers; I don't know how people in other parts of the world can stand to use regular wood for it.

 

[Lawnmooer]

Do something without looking at the instruction manual.

Edit: I can't stand making such a low content post so I will elaborate, lots of things come with instruction manuals, whether it is for building something or cooking something or fixing something a real man should be able to use their own intuition to do things their way. You can't really be a man until you build something and have leftover pieces because you didn't use them for some reason (Possibly due to using glue... Or a hammer)

At least in my opinion.

 

[ryai458]

No, I know some of that but I'm not going to learn how to dance, ride a horse,sing or play instruments, everything else ya common knowledge.

 

[Sope]

Sew buttons back on a shirt, because that is one of the most useful skills for anybody to know.

 

[smegmar]

Golden rule: ***be a dedicated husband and father.***

stay faithful to your wife, work your ass off to provide for them, teach you children all the life lessons that will make them surpass all that you have done in life.

 

[Dr_Horrible]

Also, everyone (not just us men) should know how to hunt. Not saying that they have to be hunters, but at the very least know how.

 

[Palademon]

Well I'm a male fail then.

Out of all those things I can:
Fish
Cook a few easy recipes
Take a punch
Barely read books due to them failing to keep my attention, but I can read well and have good vocabulary
Learning to drink
Barely reach a state of singing without pissing people off
Use basic tools
Talk to others
Talk to women
Play chess

OP: I'll add +1 to any vote that includes refusing to ask for help or use instructions.

 

[Wadders]

Missed a vital one there pal:

Tie a tie. Pretty essential skill for any bloke.

Also, being able to change a car wheel too. It's not hard and I'm sure most men can do it, but it's certainly essential!

 

[EHKOS]

How about smoke a fine cigar?

 

[EHKOS]

EDIT: Sorry mods, I got the captcha wrong the first time, it must've gone through anyways.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

?A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.? -Robert A. Heinlein

Word.

 

[PettingZOOPONY]

Do Dishes
Do Laundry
Iron

 

[PettingZOOPONY]

?A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.? -Robert A. Heinlein

Word.

So be a gamer?

 

[Armored Prayer]

Know how to shave and trim?

Nothing over the top, but at least know how to operate a shaver or disposable blades.

 

[Giest4life]

How about we just leave it with Baldassare Castiglione's "Book of the Courtier"?

Seriously, though, none of the items listed above are a must for being a man. Absolutely none.

 

[jackpipsam]

I would say... not to care what other people are

 

[SuperNova221]

I can't help but shake the feeling that is this was a list of "some things every woman should know how to do" and included a list of activites that society generally place as a womans task,such as cooking, sewing, cleaning etc, this thread would have been flamed horrendously as being sexist by both men and women alike. It strikes me as odd that people seem much less bothered about societal pressures towards men, even if they are more desireable things to be pressured into doing.

So I guess you could add "Like societal pressures" onto the list.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

I can't help but shake the feeling that is this was a list of "some things every woman should know how to do" and included a list of activites that society generally place as a womans task,such as cooking, sewing, cleaning etc, this thread would have been flamed horrendously as being sexist by both men and women alike. It strikes me as odd that people seem much less bothered about societal pressures towards men, even if they are more desireable things to be pressured into doing.

So I guess you could add "Like societal pressures" onto the list.

To be fair, men tend to bask in their manliness, but the cult of Domesticity hasn't been in vogue with women for a while; forget societal pressures, sometimes it just feels good to feel manly.