Essay: Manly Man

One universal symbol of men.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

I've learned something. Maybe not so much learned as was given a fresh perspective, but was enlightened nonetheless. There is something to manhood. I'll never really know for myself (because I'm not a man, duh) but there is something that turns a boy into a man. Not male. Biology makes you a male. But a man. What REALLY makes a man "a man?" 

I feel like, in Twenty-Two Goblins, Ryder tapped into this in some way! Particularly in The Four Scientific Suitors and The General's Wife.

In The Four Scientific Suitors, there is a girl whose beauty is known throughout the land. She has no interest in marrying royally, but simply asks for a man who is good-looking and is accomplished in one science. Four suitors come by, all showing off their own abilities according to his science. The one found worthy for her to marry was the swordsman because "[o]f course she should be given to the warrior Swordsman who had some manhood with his science." (The Four Scientific Suitors)

What skills accompany a warrior swordsman? Bravery. Valiance. Fearlessness. The list goes on and on. Manhood is attached to these and qualities alike! Not that these things, or a lack thereof, defines that quality of a person- but if you ask any girl out there, you better believe she wants a brave one! A fearless one! A protector!

In the General's Wife, there is a woman whose beauty far surpasses any around. The king sends out a crew to the girl, asking them to report back about her quality. They lied and told him there was something wrong with her. She then marries the General. Years later, the king sees her on a balcony and falls madly in love at first sight. He was angered to hear that his crew had lied about her beauty. As an honorable servant, the general offers up his wife to the king, but the king would have none of it. The kind refuses and says:

"I am a king. How can I do such a wicked thing? If I should transgress, who would be virtuous? You are devoted to me. Why do you urge me to a sin which is pleasant for the moment but causes great sorrow in the next world? If you abandon your wedded wife, I shall not pardon you. How could a man in my position overlook such a transgression? It is better to die." (The General's Wife)

I find his response so encouraging. It's true- if the ruler of a land transgresses so blatantly, how can he ask his people to refrain from the deplorable? The leader sets the standard. Manhood, again, demands these qualities. Leadership and valiance. 

I guess it is just cool to me to read about the qualities that make a boy become a man. Yes, there are many more out there- but these stories aren't too far off on some things!