Blogpost 1: Introduction To Herbivore

I.    Spotlight on Men
“Boys will be boys” and “All men are alike.”  These statements have become indirect justifications as to why men do things their way.  Since the beginning, man’s role in the world has been long determined.  As stated in the Bible in Chapter 1: Book of Genesis, God created mankind in his own image: man to rule over and protect his creations and woman to accompany man while he performs his task.  God also commanded them to be fruitful and increase in number.  And with approximately 7.125 billion people on earth as of now, I say that mankind has succeeded in carrying out this task most efficiently.


In any discussion related to man. Masculinity will never be left out.  I have come across an article by Dr. Raewyn Connell entitled Masculinities.  In this article, Dr. Connell said that, “In pop psychology, and a lot of popular belief, masculinity is set in concrete, fixed by the genes or by God, and impossible for women to influence.”  Dr. Connel further argued that, “There is abundant evidence that boys differ widely, masculinities are multiple, masculinities change in history - and that women have a considerable role in making them, in interaction with boys and men.”


In my opinion masculinity is a set of standard that is supposed to be followed by all men.  In a nutshell masculinity is a measure to gauge how manly a person is.  It encompasses the values expected from a guy in order to be considered manly.  And any man who deviates from these set of values may be viewed as differently from the rest of the group.  If a man is not manly enough based on the criteria of being such then issues may arise leading to complications.


II.    Herbivores in Japan
You may wonder why I titled this section as such.  You see in Japan there is a rising popular culture known as herbivore men or sôshokukei danshi.


First let me clarify that when I say herbivores it is not the denotative meaning of organisms which acquire their energy from feeding on plants.  To shed light on this topic let me cite Ms. Christina Akiko Tamaru’s study entitled "The Herbivorous Men of Japan: Negotiating New Masculinities".  According to this study the term herbivore men or “sôshokukei danshi” was first coined by columnist Maki Fukasawa in October of 2006.   In the past Japanese men were categorized into two based on their romantic and sexual identities: aggressive or unlucky.  Japanese men were labelled as carnivores while women were branded as herbivores.  Carnivores are assertive and aggressive about their romantic relationship while herbivores are more passive about their romantic relationships they are not adverse to the idea if it is offered to them but they won’t actively pursue a romantic relationship either.


When I first learned about this Japanese pop culture I thought that with or without labelling isn’t it the normal flow of things?  I mean normally men will pursue women and women will wait for men to approach them.  Like a predator gaining on its prey.  But it turned out that in the Japanese culture the said roles are strictly observed even until present time.
Still lifted from the study of Ms. Tamaru regarding herbivore men “sôshokukei danshi shows no interest in carnal desires, they have generally passive attitudes towards romance and career, and they have feminine interest.”  As unlikely as this may sound, herbivore men do not strive for sex.  The emergence of herbivore men challenged this social divide that it became a threat in terms of opportunity for family development.  Now for some of you, maybe the last part stating that herbivore men have feminine interest is no big deal, most especially in western countries.  But for a country like Japan, it may not be the case.


To concretize my discussion about herbivore men, allow me to use Mr. Masahiro Morioka’s study entitled, "A Real Study of Japanese Herbivore Men".  Using his study let me list down for you the characteristics possessed by herbivore men and compare them with the conventional males we know.General characteristics of sôshokukei danshi




1.Gentle nature – understanding the perspective of people in a weaker position and protect creatures that have been injured.  Building interpersonal relationships through constant dialogue and confirmation of each other’s feelings.

2.Not bound by manliness – possess little manliness in the sense of an ability to fight, be relied upon, and aggressively take the lead in their interactions with women.

3.Not aggressive when it comes to romance – do not ruin good relationships with women because of sexual desire.

4.View women as equals – naturally able to view a woman first as an individual human being and then as a woman.

5. Hate emotional pain – have difficulty dealing with being hurt o hurting a woman through their actions in the context of a romantic relationship.


First  males are not gentle by nature.  I mean men are expected to go to wars which are not really gentle in any way.  Men are seen as cold-hearted if not stone-hearted, most of the times.  Second, men are expected to be tough and as one belonging to this sex group I believe this statement holds truth to it.  Third men of all beings have high level of hormones when it comes to sexual desire.  The urge to reproduce will always be part of a man’s nature.  Fourth although gender equality is evidently promoted and upheld in many parts of the world there are still some cultures that follow the patriarchal system strictly.  Meaning no woman will be on equal ground with any man.  And lastly since men have a different coping mechanism than women they do not linger too much on emotional pain.  As I have said a while back there men are tough and showing signs of vulnerability may not be an option for conventional males.  And so with all these do you now see where the complication is?


III.    Perspective
Perhaps by now, I should clarify one thing: The matter with herbivore men has nothing to do with their sexuality.  Although doubtful eyes surround this relatively new breed of men, it was made clear that they are not homosexuals.  Actually, the closest label to them would be asexual even though they tend not be associated with the term.


In actuality I believe that herbivore men emerged due to the demand of changing time.  Because of them a new dimension of men was revealed to the general public; one that was thought to cease from existence.  I actually welcome the idea of herbivore men.  They provide us with a breath of fresh air when it comes to understanding the male sex.  Herbivore men should not be stereotyped.  They should be understood with open mind and heart.  Cliché as it may sound but one of the constant things in life is change.  Change is inevitable.  It is a concept feared by many as if it is alienating or contagious.  Let us always remember that what’s really important is to respect one another.  After all we are all under the same blue sky.  So let’s not be too quick to judge.