Why do most men cut their hair short and most women grow it long?

falseatheist

I remember reading somewhere that during battles enemies would pull the long hair of males to catch them so they kept it short. But is there any truth to this?

More interestingly, it seems that a majority of people identify with their expected behaviour of their gender, (men not showing emotions, women wearing skirts, heels, etc) which is not wrong and they have the right to do whatever they want to themselves but I wonder why so many men and women are not keen to experiment.

I for example, am biologically a male but don't prescribe to my male gender identity. I have short but feminine hair which I sometimes grow long and during the summer I wear denim shorts . I shop for male shoes and female clothes in GAP, Timberland etc.


So would you ever experiment?

valoren

I don't have a choice in the matter.

Being bald.

podgemonster

falseatheist wrote: »

So would you ever experiment?

Tried Lyons Tea instead of Barry's for a week.

My father found out. We haven't spoken since.

The Moldy Gowl

Denim shorts on guy?

Far too early for that image

longshanks

I'm a ninja.

Pink Fairy

Only ladyboys have long hair !

mansize

whats the deal with airline food?

andekwarhola

Denim shorts exist on a plane of hideousness that cannot be bound by mere gender categorizations.

DrumSteve

Pink Fairy wrote: »

Only ladyboys have long hair !

And metal heads.

DrumSteve

andekwarhola wrote: »

Denim shorts exist on a plane of hideousness that cannot be bound by mere gender categorizations.

They are associated with a disorder known as "nevernude".

falseatheist

The Moldy Gowl wrote: »

Denim shorts on guy?

Far too early for that image

Well I did get a few whistles from men...

One eyed Jack

falseatheist wrote: »

I remember reading somewhere that during battles enemies would pull the long hair of males to catch them so they kept it short. But is there any truth to this?

More interestingly, it seems that a majority of people identify with their expected behaviour of their gender, (men not showing emotions, women wearing skirts, heels, etc) which is not wrong and they have the right to do whatever they want to themselves but I wonder why so many men and women are not keen to experiment.

I for example, am biologically a male but don't prescribe to my male gender identity. I have short but feminine hair which I sometimes grow long and during the summer I wear denim shorts . I shop for male shoes and female clothes in GAP, Timberland etc.


So would you ever experiment?

How is any of that more interesting than your question about enemies in battle pulling each others hair, so they kept it short? I want to know the answer to that question!!

Far more interested in history than I am in fashion trends, but that answers your second question I suppose - I experiment by timing how long it takes people to spot the fact that I wear essentially the same clothes every day

BattleCorp

falseatheist wrote: »

I remember reading somewhere that during battles enemies would pull the long hair of males to catch them so they kept it short. But is there any truth to this?

More interestingly, it seems that a majority of people identify with their expected behaviour of their gender, (men not showing emotions, women wearing skirts, heels, etc) which is not wrong and they have the right to do whatever they want to themselves but I wonder why so many men and women are not keen to experiment.

I for example, am biologically a male but don't prescribe to my male gender identity. I have short but feminine hair which I sometimes grow long and during the summer I wear denim shorts . I shop for male shoes and female clothes in GAP, Timberland etc.


So would you ever experiment?

Off to North Korea with you. They have 28 hair styles that are legal. That'll learn you what type of haircut you can have. None of your feminine lark. No denim shorts for you either.

The denim shorts apparently cause chaffing when you are in the work camps.

As for would I ever experiment, sorry but I don't play that game with anything with a willy.

mansize

BattleCorp wrote: »

Off to North Korea with you. They have 28 hair styles that are legal. That'll learn you what type of haircut you can have. None of your feminine lark. No denim shorts for you either.

The denim shorts apparently cause chaffing when you are in the work camps.

As for would I ever experiment, sorry but I don't play that game with anything with a willy.

you should, its so much fun!

kneemos

Unless you're a rock star,then it somehow becomes acceptable and even expected.

The One Doctor

falseatheist wrote: »

More interestingly, it seems that a majority of people identify with their expected behaviour of their gender.

I for example, am biologically a male but don't prescribe to my male gender identity.

You're asexual, aromantic and you find it confusing that I as a male don't want to wear a skirt?

Man these UCD/Indo reading types need to get a life.

NoCrackHaving

Boring answer: hair-length's gender associations are highly culturally sensitive. For example the Romans thought having long hair was the sign of a barbarian while the Gaelic inhabitants of Ireland associated short hair with being a slave. During the English Civil War it was a mark of which side you were fighting on. In the West the fashion for short hair on men really began with WW1 when lice and fleas in the trenches meant having beards and long hair wasn't a great idea.

Real answer: does any really give a **** any more?

kneemos

Professors are another group I imagine with long hair.

Duggy747

I have long, shoulder-length hair because I've never liked having short hair on me............that's pretty much it, it suits my face shape better.

It comes with the territory where people assume I have it because I'm a hippy, a goth, a "faggót", I'm sticking it to the man, a nerd, "hey look, it's Dave Grohl......hurr, hurr!!", etc.................It's hair for fúck sake, people care more about it than I actually do.

Though it was handy for attracting the wimmen......even if all they wanted to do was play with it / straighten it. The fiancee is a hair-stylist so free haircuts, haven't paid for one in years!

maudgonner

There's also the fact that if a guy is balding and has long hair it can start to just look...wrong.

Exhibit A

Exhibit B


But generally I say have whatever hairstyle you want! Mullets for all!!!

falseatheist

The One Doctor wrote: »

You're asexual, aromantic and you find it confusing that I as a male don't want to wear a skirt?

Man these UCD/Indo reading types need to get a life.

Whats wrong with wearing a skirt as a male if it looks good on you?

kneemos

falseatheist wrote: »

Whats wrong with wearing a skirt as a male if it looks good on you?

I'd say they're extremely comfortable. Have to be careful no one sees your hoo ha though.

One eyed Jack

falseatheist wrote: »

Whats wrong with wearing a skirt as a male if it looks good on you?

It doesn't. That's what's wrong with it.

BattleCorp

falseatheist wrote: »

Whats wrong with wearing a skirt as a male if it looks good on you?

I wore a kilt to a wedding once.

Some shock when I sat down on the freezing cold church bench. :eek:

falseatheist

One eyed Jack wrote: »

It doesn't. That's what's wrong with it.

And can you please explain the logic of why it looks good on women and looks bad on ALL men. Not even some men or most men but "all" men?

Teyla Emmagan

You can wear whatever you want OP, but please don't feel the need to bang on about it.

riffmongous

Longer hair used to be pretty common in 70s and early 80s Ireland I think, look at any gaa team photos from the period and a lot of the younger players will have a big head of hair.

m5ex9oqjawdg2i

NoCrackHaving wrote: »

Boring answer: hair-length's gender associations are highly culturally sensitive. For example the Romans thought having long hair was the sign of a barbarian while the Gaelic inhabitants of Ireland associated short hair with being a slave. During the English Civil War it was a mark of which side you were fighting on. In the West the fashion for short hair on men really began with WW1 when lice and fleas in the trenches meant having beards and long hair wasn't a great idea.

Real answer: does any really give a **** any more?

Yes, long hair/beards still carry the stigma of being "unclean" or some such nonsense.

Link to all the "studies" you want, I don't believe you find more faeces in a beard than your arse. Or whatever crap these studies come up with.

One eyed Jack

falseatheist wrote: »

And can you please explain the logic of why it looks good on women and looks bad on ALL men. Not even some men or most men but "all" men?

Cultural norms influence what people subjectively determine looks attractive, or indeed looks ridiculous on the wearer. Men wearing skirts happen to fall into the latter category for me. It does for most people in Western society. It does even for you because you claim you don't prescribe to gender norms, so you are at least aware of those norms.

Now if you think a skirt looks good on a man, that's your subjective personal taste and I can't argue with that, but to claim it needs to be explained to you why someone else would think a skirt looks ridiculous on a man is your own wilful blindness of cultural norms.

CruelCoin

falseatheist wrote: »

I remember reading somewhere that during battles enemies would pull the long hair of males to catch them so they kept it short. But is there any truth to this?

More interestingly, it seems that a majority of people identify with their expected behaviour of their gender, (men not showing emotions, women wearing skirts, heels, etc) which is not wrong and they have the right to do whatever they want to themselves but I wonder why so many men and women are not keen to experiment.

Not sure what emotions have to do with long hair but anyhoooooo

I'm a man, i have long hair reaching the small of my back. I like it, and think it suits me as i look stupid with short hair.

As for the long hair in battle thing, depends on the era and the country. Romans kept it short, gauls/germanic tribes kept it long, etc etc (indeed in germanic tribes you weren't a real man unless you did have long hair).

superglue

I say live and let live, except when it comes to man-buns. They are hideous and are never excusable.


NEVER.

The Moldy Gowl

How I feel.

http://m.imgur.com/trZ89SX?r

BlondeMoment

Khal Drogo has long hair and hes the manliest man I know.

Shenshen

I can't honestly answer that one - I've always preferred men with long hair and women with short haircuts.

But then, I'm weird.

Blowfish

I had long hair for a while, but then I realised I'm far too lazy for the extra effort in keeping it clean and tidy etc. so I ditched it.

Clothes wise, Ireland is too cold most of the year for skirts/dresses so I don't think I'd ever bother with one.

whatdoicare

My husband had long hair for a while, he really wasn't able to make it work, he looked freaking ridiculous...plus he was walking around with bits of food and building site in his hair. It was pretty nasty.

I was so happy the day he walked out of the bathroom with his head clean shaven.
Not so happy when I walked into the bathroom and had to clean up all his hair out of the shower :mad:

Now he's growing a fuppin' beard... He looks like Hagrid and he's giving me beard rash. In protest I'm refusing to shave my legs. My toddler loves his beard, she's been clipping slides and plaiting it all week haha.

turnikett1

Beards are to men are what hair is to women. Well, that's certainly how I feel since growing one. Can't stop grooming and playing with it... even bought beard oil

Galwayguy35

I have a number 2 haircut because I'm going bald, even before that I liked my hair reasonably short.

Never clean shaven though I always have a few days stubble.

As fo what people were saying about why women look good in skirts and heels and men don't, probably because most men are attracted to women.

Also most of us are way heavier than woman and would break our necks in heels!

Jim Bob Scratcher

Long hair looks a lot better than a shaved head imo. Shaved head looks a bit knackerish imo, unless you're going bald...

maudgonner

Jim Bob Scratcher wrote: »

Long hair looks a lot better than a shaved head imo. Shaved head looks a bit knackerish imo, unless you're going bald...

I'd respectfully disagree with that. I reckon shaved heads on guys look great, I'd far prefer it to long hair.

Especially nice when it grows back to just beyond the stubble stage and gets lovely and soft and strokable, like a kitten's fur.

scopper

People end up subscribing to the norms because after say the cool transgressive late teens/early twenties there is no time left to alter cultural norms. We outsource that to artists and rock stars.

If you imagine you are blowing people's minds with this stuff please know everyone who sees you goes, 'ah, poor lad, don't say anything, he has no idea how stupid he looks.'

Aurum

I've always found the double-standard when it comes to clothing a bit strange. If a woman wears trousers/jeans it's totally unremarkable and they can still be viewed as conventionally attractive, but if a man wears a skirt it's a complete subversion of his masculinity. Sort of reminds me of Eddie Izzard's response to people who ask why he wears women's clothes, “They’re not women’s clothes. They’re my clothes. I bought them.”

Jim Bob Scratcher

maudgonner wrote: »

I'd respectfully disagree with that. I reckon shaved heads on guys look great, I'd far prefer it to long hair.

Especially nice when it grows back to just beyond the stubble stage and gets lovely and soft and strokable, like a kitten's fur.

I think ye women don't like men with long hair because you're afraid it might look better than yer own

maudgonner

Jim Bob Scratcher wrote: »

I think ye women don't like men with long hair because you're afraid it might look better than yer own

Yup, and that's 99% of the reason we don't all turn lesbian as well, too much hair competition :pac:

bodice ripper

When I inexplicably become empress of the planet, I will be issuing short hair licences to very few, regardless of gender.

endacl

valoren wrote: »

I don't have a choice in the matter.

Being bald.

Yeah? Long bald, or short bald?

Day Lewin

Johnny Depp with long hair. Sexiest thing. Rest my case.

Also, kilts. Enuff said. I bet you can't find me one woman who doesn't like them!!!

johnayo

I like to keep mine trimmed and neat whilst the wife have shaved all hers off.
Ohhhhhh.......................just realised you were talking about head hair. Sorry bout that.

Olishi4

My OH had long hair for a while. He shaves it now...well I shave it for him. He tends to ask me just as I am about to do something else. I like both long, short or shaved hair on him. All suit him really.

A lot of men I know have, at some stage, let their hair grow for a while. Some it suited and some it didn't.

Speaking of that bun thing, one male hairstyle that is out of fashion now but i never really liked, was that curtain hairstyle with loads of gel in it and the hair kept getting in their eyes but thats just my opinion.

RDM_83 again

Teyla Emmagan wrote: »

You can wear whatever you want OP, but please don't feel the need to bang on about it.

Those that talk about breaking gender norms are those most concerned with them.

Currently have a woman chainsawing the sh-t out of stuff in work in all that PPE. Is she breaking cultural taboos and being gender fluid or just being a professional doing her job? I'd go with the latter

Malari

katemarch wrote: »

Johnny Depp with long hair. Sexiest thing. Rest my case.

Also, kilts. Enuff said. I bet you can't find me one woman who doesn't like them!!!

Yeah, I do not like kilts on men. At all. Or long hair. Facial hair, fine. :pac: