BRING BACK THE MAN!

She told me she had discovered a wonderful young man who was going to help her in the East End, and that his name was Dorian Gray.
I am bound to state that she never told me he was good-looking.
Women have no appreciation of good looks; at least, good women have not.
She said that he was very earnest and had a beautiful nature.
I at once pictured to myself a creature with spectacles and lank hair, horribly freckled, and tramping about on huge feet.
- 'The Picture of Dorian Gray', Oscar Wilde

These days, the more masculinized the Woman becomes, the more emasculated the Man seems to be. We now live in world where the metrosexual has risen; men spend as long - if not longer - preening themselves in front of a mirror than a women and, seemingly at the request of women, have become more sensitive and effeminate than ever. The thing is though, should we have been more careful what we wished for?

Yes, these men "take care of themselves", with the help of male skincare ranges, fake-tan, hair-straighteners and even makeup. Gone are the days of the rugged, "un-washed", probably over-weight, most likely football-fanatical, "man's man". Reality TV Shows such as TOWIE, Made in Chelsea and Geordie Shore have all copulated and spat out the likes of Gary Beadle, Ollie Locke, Joey Essex, Mark Wright, all of whom I can guarantee are more tanned, more toned and more fashion-conscious than I will probably ever care to be.

It has always been the woman's responsibility to be the groomed, beautiful, sex icon throughout history, it is a relatively new requirement for the man to donate his time and money to the same dizzy heights of upkeep. In terms of the "real woman" debate, the differentiation between a woman who is "real" and "unreal" comes down to one being "normal looking" (i.e usually somewhere between a size 12 and 16, with curves, cellulite and stretch marks) and the other being, well, photoshopped. However, when discussing the difference between the metrosexual man and the good old-fashioned man's man, what are we talking about? It seems to me that the level of male grooming that has now emerged has taken the place of the grafter - the man who gets his hands dirty, works hard and doesn't care how he looks or smells when he comes home at the end of day.

I'm in dangerous territory here of stereotyping and I would hate to do that as nothing riled me more growing up as a skinny size 6 with not one curve on her body, feeling as though she wasn't a "real woman". The issue here isn't a man looking good and taking care of himself, but the fact that more often than not, in doing so he is replaced with a vain, personality-void drone who makes a living from his reputation of sleeping around, drinking excessively and being thick. A television show has actually been created in honour of Joey Essex's stupidity and Gary Beadle is famous for being a "top-shagger", having proudly admitted to sleeping with over 1,000 women.

drone

drəʊn/

a male bee in a colony of social bees, which does no work but can fertilize a queen.

• a person who does no useful work and lives off others.

It would be wrong of me (would it?) to judge these men who have clearly done very well for themselves - driving around donned in designer clothes from within their sports cars - with seemingly very little effort. But I am getting off the point.
[Personally, I have never been a fan of the chiseled, pretty-boy look, which is why I am happy to see the rugged, "alternative" boy and The Beard coming back into fashion, but again, that is beside's the point. However, I'll allow myself one small indulgence - just for point of reference purposes...]

Patrik Jonasson

Now clearly, seeing as Patrik Jonasson's profession is male model, it is obvious that he will also spend extensive amounts of time on his appearance. But do you know what I see when I look at him as opposed to the men pictured above him? The representation of a man with personality. Someone a little different. Someone who isn't drip-fed what to say by MTV or E4 to make him appear cool or funny, but someone with intelligence and wit, who thinks for himself. Someone who isn't afraid to be hairy, quirky, slightly on the skinny side and potentially about to chop trees down in the middle of a snowy forest, for God's sake!
Again, if I appear to be stereotyping here, so what. It is common practise for a man to judge a women as either being "the pretty one" or "the funny one", but never both at the same time. A blonde being one-night-stand material and a brunette being marriage-material. We live in a  judgemental age and clearly, just like women, men can't do right for doing wrong. We wanted the sensitive type that could relate to our feelings and share their own, we've got them. We wanted a man who cleans up after himself and takes pride in his appearance, here it is. While trying so hard to be the stronger sex, I fear that women have collectively succeeded in castrating the male race.

In closing: BRING BACK THE MAN!