"The Way of Men" by Jack Donovan

What happens when society falls apart? Men must work together in gangs to survive. In "The Way of Men" Jack Donovan gives us a history of manhood, demonstrating how the Four Tactical Virtues turn chaos into order. What are those virtues? What is a gang? And why is this knowledge critical for modern men? All these answers and much more in today's episode.

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Show Notes:

00:00 - Intro to "The Way of Men"

What is a man? How do we define manhood?What is a gang and why does it matter for men?

3:15 - How easy is the book to read?

Easy to read, harder to implementPrint: 192 pages (probably 4-5 hours)Audio: 5 hours, read by Donovan himselfDonovan's ideas will be VERY HARD to swallow for anyone who has trouble thinking outside the box of modern cultural norms

4:30 - Reviews and Significance

Well known (676 4½-star reviews on Amazon)Very popular in the Manosphere and The Red Pill community

6:00 - How Matt and Jay discovered book

TWoM referenced continuously - often reverently - throughout Manosphere

8:00 - Bio of Jack Donovan

Writer, blogger, podcaster (Jack-Donovan.com)Written several books, including “A More Complete Beast,” “A Sky Without Eagles,” and “Becoming a Barbarian” Guest on many podcasts: AoM, Order of Man, Art of Charm, Mating Grounds, etc.TheCut.com - Profile of Donovan’s history, sexuality and politicsRaised by conservative blue-collar parents in rural Pennsylvania. Left home to explore the world and study fine art in New York. Then dropped out of school to study MMA, live off the land and found his own theories of independence, masculinity and a gang/warrior ethos.Part of the “Wolves of Vinland,” a neo-pagan group practicing masculine rituals, “Fight Club”-style skirmishes and promoting various alt-right theories and beliefs

11:00 - Major themes

History of Masculinity from the beginning of time until nowFour Tactical Virtues: Strength, Courage, Mastery & Honor

14:00 - Jay's perspectives

So good it's worth re-reading multiple timesDonovan's ideas on manhood are critical for modern menManhood is neither good or or bad - It's a tool that can be used for eitherQuestion for Donovan: How does Donovan's ideal world look like?Also read: "The Way of the Superior Man" by David Deida

20:00 - Matt's perspectives

Donovan taps into Zombie Apocalypse, raw lifeThe importance of resetting society back to what matters mostBeing a "Good Man" vs "Being good at being a man"The Four Pillars of Manhood are criticalQuestion for Donovan: How did you distill down these questions in this book?Also read: "Fight Club" by Chuck Palahniuk

26:00 - Final Thoughts

"Women can demonstrate strength, but strength is a quality that defines masculinity….There is no human culture where men who are weak are considered manlier while women who are more muscular are considered more womanly."

Matt's favorite quotes from "The Way of Men"

"Being good at being a man is about being willing and able to fulfill the natural role of men in a survival scenario. Being good at being a man is about showing other men that you are the kind of guy they’d want on their team if the shit hits the fan. Being good at being a man isn’t a quest for moral perfection, it’s about fighting to survive."

Jay's favorite quotes from "The Way of Men"

“Masculinity is about what men want from each other...When someone tells a man to be a man, they are telling him to be more like other men, more like the majority of men, and ideally more like the men whom other men hold in high regard.”

“Courage in its highest and purest form involves the willful risk of bodily harm or death for the good of the group. Lesser risks require greater dilutions of courage."

Maybe by DoKashiteru (c) copyright 2009 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Nonco