Thomas Fink - The Mans Book: The Essential Guide for the Modern Man

Copyright 2006, 2007, 2009 by Thomas Fink

All right reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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First eBook Edition: May 2009

Little, Brown and Company is a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc. The Little, Brown name and logo are trademarks of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

Baden-Powell quotation used by permission of The Scout Association.

Le Modulor (1945, Le Corbusier) Fondation Le Corbusier / DACS, 2008

Survival tools reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd, John Wiseman, 1986

007 in New York quotation Ian Fleming, 1962

The techniques and methods presented in this book are the result of the Authors experience with certain equipment and tools, and proper care should be taken to use the suitable materials as the Author advises. It is difficult to ensure that all the instructions given are completely accurate, and the possibility of error can never be eliminated fully. This book and the material contained herein have not been examined for safety engineering, consumer or workplace safety, or similar or dissimilar laws and regulations. The Author and the Publisher are not responsible for any injury and or damage to persons or property which is incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any of the contents in this book.

ISBN: 978-0-316-05304-4

Also by Thomas Fink

The 85 Ways to Tie a Tie (with Yong Mao)

The Mans Book is the authoritative handbook for mens customs, habits, and pursuits a compendium for modern-day manliness. Organized in a man-logical way, it records unspoken customs, catalogs essential information, and guides you through the sometimes complex rituals of a mans life. It is also up to date: it notes the latest trends and anticipates what lies ahead.

At a time when the sexes are muddled and masculinity is marginalized, The Mans Book unabashedly celebrates being male. Guys, dads, fellows, and lads, rejoice: The Mans Book will bring you back to where you belong.

The standard symbol for man is an arrow emanating from a circle in a northeast direction, believed to represent a shield and spear. It is also the symbol for the planet Mars, named after the Roman war god of the same name. It is the symbol for the male connector, the alchemic symbol for the element iron, and the Volvo automobile logo. Its Unicode representation is U+ 2642 and its Alt code is Alt+11.

Ian Fleming . You only live twice: / Once when you are born / And once when you look death in the face. (You Only Live Twice, 1964)

Samuel Johnson . It is so very difficult (said he, always) for a sick man not to be a scoundrel. (Mrs. Piozzi, Anecdotes)

Arnold Schwarzenegger . If you want to be a champion you cannot have any kind of an outside negative force coming in and affect you. Lets say before a contest, if I get emotionally involved with a girl that can have a negative effect on my mind and therefore destroy my workout. So I have to cut my emotions off and be kind of cold, in a way Thats what you do with the rest of the things. If somebody steals my car outside of my door right now I dont care I trained myself for that. To be totally cold and not have things go into my mind. (Pumping Iron, 1977)

AC/DC . I always fill my ballroom / The event is never small / The social pages say Ive got / The biggest balls of all. (Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap, 1976)

Benjamin Franklin . Hes a fool that makes his doctor his heir.. Keep your mouth wet, feet dry.. Beware of the young doctor and the old barber.. A good wife and health is a mans best wealth.. Theres more old drunkards than old doctors. (Poor Richards Almanack, 17321757)

1 IDEAL MAN

Leonardo da Vincis well-known Vitruvian Man is based on the ancient ideal proportions of man written down by the Roman architect Vitruvius. Mans outstretched span is equal to his height, marking out a square, and his spread-eagled body marks the circumference of a circle with the origin at his navel. These are not the only mathematical symmetries present in Leonardos study of the ideal man. According to the architect and the text accompanying the drawing, the proportions of man also satisfy the following linear relationships.

1 height

= 1 arm span

= 2 halves

= 4 widths

= 4 nipples up

= 5 forearms

= 7 feet

= 8 heads

= 8 upper arms

= 10 hands

= 10 faces

= 24 palms

= 30 ears

= 30 foreheads

= 30 mouths

= 96 fingers

where half = beginning of genitals to top of head . width = width at shoulders . nipples up = center of nipples to top of head . forearm = elbow to tip of hand . head = bottom of chin to top of head . upper arm = elbow to armpit . hand = length of hand . face = bottom of chin to hairline . palm = width of palm . ear = length of ear . forehead = eyebrows to hairline . mouth = bottom of chin to bottom of nose . finger = width of finger

The Swiss architect and designer Le Corbusier (Charles-Edouard Jeanneret) developed the Modulor, a measure based on mathematics and the human scale: it is constituted of a double series of numbers, the red series and the blue. The blue series is twice the red, and any two consecutive lengths in the same series differ by a factor of the Golden ratio (Colophon, p 228). Le Corbusiers proportions for man and his surroundings are shown opposite. The numbers in the diagram are the height of the horizontal bar.

The ideal relationship between height and weight can be quantified by the body mass index (BMI). The BMI is the number obtained by taking your weight in kilograms divided by your height in meters squared, or 703 times your weight in pounds divided by your height in inches squared. For example, a 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) man weighing 160 lb (73 kg) has a BMI of 23. For men, 23 to 25 is ideal (highlighted below), although there is some room for fluctuation. An endomorphic (broadset) build might be just above this range; an ectomorphic (slim) build, just below. James Bond, who is known to have a lean figure, has a BMI of 22.4. Below is a table of values for different heights and weights. There may be slight discrepancies due to rounding.