Jun 14, 2011
Ethel G.

Why Do Men Shave?


I don’t know about you, but every morning I see my boy friend shave. It’s a ritual — shower, comb hair, shav­e, brush teeth, dress. For some unknown reason I once asked him why does he shave? “Why? I don’t know, Youthfulness, shaving presents a clean face to the onlooker, conversant.”

Showering is easy to understand. If you don’t shower, you start to stink. Combing the hair is easy to understand too, because it would be a mess if you didn’t comb it. If you don’t brush your teeth, they rot and fall out. And dressing, obviously, is a necessity.

Shaving is the removal of body hair, using a sharp blade known as a razor or with any other kind of bladed implement, to slice it down to the level of the skin. Shaving is most commonly used by men to remove their facial hair, and a man is called clean shaven if he has had his removed totally.

Men have been shaving forever. Cavemen probably shaved with stone knives, and there’s some suggestion that they may even have trimmed their hair with fire. Beards can be uncomfortable, and they easily get nasty because they trap food.

But why is it that, for a majority of men, all facial hair must be removed? There certainly isn’t any health reason to shave it off. Why would we spend the time and money to go through this hair loss ritual each and every day?

Among the many reasons I found while doing some research men began shaving in Stone Age times were:

– To reduce the breeding grounds for lice, fleas and small rodents.
– To eliminate the beard as a place for an enemy to hang on during combat.
– To make it easier to eat.
– Superstition associated a heavily bearded man with old age and death, in addition to the superstitious belief of spirits which entered the body through hairs on the head.

“The word “barber” comes from the Latin word “barba,” meaning beard. It may surprise you to know that the earliest records of barbers show that they were the foremost men of their tribe. Medicine men and the priests. But primitive man was very superstitious and the early tribes believed that both good and bad spirits, which entered the body through the hairs on the head, inhabited every individual.

Alexander the Great never lost a battle, not to the Persians or to anyone else. But he did order his men shaved so that their beards could not be grabbed in battle. Same for the Romans.

Yet you find many men who support a beard and I am sure there are a variety of reasons for that too, but I am not getting into that right now. I must admit though that a beard or a moustache alone on some men look very graceful.

Now its your turn to talk, why do you shave guys?

421 Comments

  • A man should always be well groomed,hair kept short and combed neatly in place with pomade at all times.

    The face should be clean shaven at all times,no beards,cunt-ticklers or goatees.

    A man must never have earings,piercings or other degenerate markings or disfigurements.

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  • What actually causes the growth of facial hair and why can’t the medical world find a cure for those of us men who don’t want to take a knife (a glorified razor) to scrape off an unwanted growth each morning.

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  • Have you ever taken a good look at the religious Jewish men.
    That’s why.
    (Don’t get your nickers in a bind. I’m a Israeli Jew and proud of it.)

  • I used to THINK I shaved because the men in my religious calling shaved – not that a beard would be sinful, but people often react negatively to one, and we’d rather not distract from the message we preach. But now, after being in the hospital, intubated, and unconscious in an ICU unit for about a week (about 3 years ago), I have another reason that trumps all others. When I finally came to, my face felt like it was on FIRE. The first thing I did when I was able to walk, was to shave. Even before the catheter came out. I don’t know how anyone can stand to have a full beard; it was like getting caught in a zipper, if you know what I mean … only on my FACE!

  • If God wants me to shave , than i was born with a phillips around my neck:)

  • I have been shaving since I was 13. It made me feel like I was becoming a man. Every morning when I see my stubbly face in the mirror I am reminded of my manhood. I like neatly trimmed beard or goatee too. My boyfriend likes the course feel of beard stubble. He thinks I am more sexy and handsome.

  • I don’t shave my beard because I don’t have to submit to another man’s will to survive. My beard represents freedom, self-determination and control over my own destiny. With a beard, I look fierce and aggressive. Beards represent wisdom, maturity, masculinity, and the intellectual capacity that comes with those traits, as well as independence, closeness to nature, and political revolution. Above all, being beardless represents fear, submission, and symbolic emasculation.

  • I have high cheek bones for a male, and it makes me look very boyish if i dont shave. Granted, i very neaty trim my facial hair, like a pencil look. It instantly makes me look more manly, even though it also instantly adds about 6 years to my face. But im 23 and I like older women. So this works in my favor

  • to not to shave the beard is more manly; to shave it makes a man more femenine.

    A stubble, or a few days grwoth may look a bit scruffy, but once a beard is grown long, and groomed, then it looks beutifull.

    A number four or up beard looks more beutifull then no beard, so think about growing a besrd peeps; and I think it increases mans virility more too…

  • For 22 years of my life, as a soldier and a police officer, I had to shave practically daily.

    Since I retired from law enforcement last year, I’ve learned that being a little scruffy is okay.

    So, to answer your question, most men shave because they HAVE TO. Outside of being forced to, we enjoy looking like cavemen. Women like that, right? Right?

  • Ever seen one of those long goatees which looks like a scrotum hanging off of the face?

    Testicle chin = d*ck face.

    Good reason to shave.

    Plus, I hate seeing people with nasty goatees. They strut around jutting it out, with their noses in the air.

    Quite contemptuous, really, but undesrvedly so. They are usually inferior socially, economically, physically, intelligence -wise…

  • shaved today after nearly 2 months without shaving…
    actually when i keep my beard for a full week before shaving, i notice that i do get a lot more attention and innuendo from women, than without or with a full beard…
    having said that my girlfriend doesnt like me to shave, and apparently im a very handsome bearded mediterranean 🙂

  • I shave because James Bond shaves. Enough said. 😉

  • Part of the reason I shave is for relaxation… the warm water, the thick lather created by a badger hair brush, the pleasant aroma the products I use, and the clean sensation I get afterward.

    A nice calming shaving routine is a great way to get the day started.

  • Your words put me into consideration…..
    People mostly put it as a daily essential, I guess.
    But an advantage that beard would bring, is it changes your look when itself changes, whether to be wild or mild, lol…

  • My boyfriend do not like shaving,and rarely do it.

  • Some men must shave in order to meet safety requirements on the job site. For example, working in an environment that requires wearing a respirator, as in a chemical plant or dusty work place. A clean shaved face allows the rubber on the respirator to seal properly. Facial hair won’t allow a proper seal, rendering the respirator useless. Besides most women prefer a nice smooth face to kiss.

  • yeas,i like to have a little beard .it makes me very charmful.

  • its a must! why? first, i use to work in a restaurant, then makes me feel young after shaving. Lastly, my wife hates it.

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