The ‘New Man’- Urban Metrosexuals

Last night we had a little discussion centering around the popularization of the ‘new man’—the metrosexual. Though the women’s movement has led to more equality between men and women in the workplace, it has also forced men opening up to modernization. The modern man is not only concerned with making money for his family, but equally focused on his personal grooming, fashion and skincare.

If you have the chance to watch Travel & Living and catch Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, you will know what a metrosexuals aspire to. A life of knowing how to put together a nice outfit, what wine is good with what food, how to keep house, and being presentable.

Metrosexuals have been around for a while, but have become more and more obvious and culturally acceptable, as men’s fashion and products have multiplied and access to information has become easier. Men in the past might have been self-conscious about buying a men’s fashion magazine because he might think others would consider him a homosexual for being interested in fashion, instead of sports. The Internet has made it easier to get information in the privacy of your home, and as more fashionable men appear on the streets, more men are following the trend.
But what’s wrong with a man who is more concerned about how he looks and appears to others, instead of one who doesn’t shave and can’t coordinate his shirt and tie? This ‘new man’ might be a very good thing for the fashion-conscious powerful, independent woman- an accessory, if you will.