The Art of Womanliness

How Trying to Be a Better Man Made Me a Better Woman

I discovered the "Art of Manliness" website in fall 2010. As a sixth-year undergrad struggling with staying motivated and trying to get myself in-shape enough to try for a spot on a roller derby league, the blog's focus on recovering the lost art of being the best you can be resonated with me. I couldn't relate to the majority of self-improvement schemes aimed at fellow females, centered around being the same size and style as the music or movie mavens of the moment, or finding just the right man. Ironically enough, I found the inspiration for becoming a better woman in following the advice for becoming a better man.

No, I didn't start wearing three-piece pant suits with french cuffs and shaving my jawline with a straight razor (goodness knows my legs are trouble enough). And yes, the Art of Manliness blog does have a solid smattering of articles on how to do exactly that. However, the intent of these articles, and the primary message of myriad others, is to establish a long-lost way of thinking about oneself. The blog is upfront about the fact that their pushes towards vintage shaving supplies and timeless tailoring aims to convince men that their appearance impacts the impression they make on others. There are articles on weight loss, but they center around being healthy and spry, and managing your wardrobe during the transition, rather than idolizing often unreasonable sizes and shapes. It struck me that this was exactly what most women ought to hear.

Even more impressive than the holistic, health-oriented treatment of a touchy and usually superficial topic like weight management, was that this attitude is maintained throughout the blog over a wide variety of subjects. The guys behind it are clearly not interested in turning out dapper-looking douchebags. Other articles admonish men to strive to be better fathers, learn useful skills outdoors and in, have integrity, be knowledgeable about everything from history to whiskey, and treat others with respect be they ladies or gents.

A lot of the images and even some of the articles are blasts from the past, but this only goes to show us that behaving and living well are things that both genders have lost somewhere between the Cold War and the War on Terror. The blog is only aimed at one half of this demographic, but there are more general articles on how to foster healthy habits that are definitely "one sex fits all." Either way, I think women can learn just as much from any AoM entry about how to care for and conduct themselves.

I'm going into the new year looking forward to the past. I'm excited to try and update my increasingly dissolute outlook on a seemingly endless college career and hopeless derby career with a little old-school decorum and dandification. And just to throw a little modern into the mix, I picked up a copy of GQ before my flight. The "Look Sharp, Live Smart" tagline on the cover seems right in line with my mid-century mission for (wo)manliness. And Ryan Gosling ain't bad, either.