Introduction
I recently finished reading Jack Donovan’s three-book series that includes “The Way of Men” (2012), “Becoming a Barbarian” (2016), and “A More Complete Beast” (2018). My summary of the series is this: It starts out very strong and then progressively gets worse. Donovan put most of his good ideas into the first and second books. Musicians spend their entire lives writing their first and second albums, and they only spend a year writing the subsequent albums, which is why the music typically gets worse. I believe this same thing happened with Donovan’s ideas. “The Way of Men” is definitely his strongest and most profound book, and I recommend it and consider it to be required reading for every man. Unfortunately, Donovan’s third book is all fluff and I had a very difficult time maintaining interest and finishing it. But this review is focused only on his first book, “The Way of Men”.
I did some cursory research on Donovan before writing this blog post, and I was surprised to find out that he is gay, or at least that’s what the feminist hit pieces online say about him. This is curious indeed. All the usual default feminist accusations of “male supremacy”, “white nationalism”, and “racism” are all there on his Wikipedia page, but the fact that Donovan is gay was definitely unexpected. It appears that Donovan chooses to separate masculinity from sexual preference, which is an interesting position to take. I’ll no doubt take heat for such a non-politically correct opinion, but I’m going to disagree with you Jack. A large part of masculinity and being a man is being sexually attracted to, and being able to attract, women.
Donovan’s homosexuality does explain why he barely ever mentions women in his three books, which is unique for red-pill books for men. However, it was refreshing for Donovan to turn his focus away from women, as there is much more to being a man than how he interacts with women.
With this said, I am still going to review Donovan’s books strictly on the merits of his writing. There are plenty of profound and life-changing ideas in this book, and a man should judge a book on the merit of the ideas inside and not the sexual preference of the author.
The Gang
This is Donovan’s most profound idea in all three of his books. As he states, “The way of men is the way of the gang”. I completely agree with this assessment. Donovan uses the word “gang” to describe a man’s natural default social group. Men are hardwired to form small gangs that act as task forces with specific objectives and missions. Any man that has participated on a sports team or has been in the military knows how natural and rewarding it feels to be cooperating with other men in a small group. The camaraderie a man feels with other men is one of the most rewarding feelings he can have in his lifetime.
One of the biggest problems facing men today is the lack of ability to connect with other men and form close-knit groups of men. When men do not belong to an all-male group, and when they don’t have close male friends, they are more susceptible to the manipulation of women and the Feminine Imperative. Without vigilance and a group of men keeping him masculine, a man will slowly adopt feminine traits into his personality. The goal of every Wife, Girlfriend, and the Feminine Imperative is to turn men into women. Since women are solipsistic by nature, they always believe that the feminine approach to life is the correct way. Women are biologically incapable of appreciating the masculine approach to life.
The Perimeter
This is Donovan’s second most profound idea in all three of his books. Again, I completely agree with his points here. I have recognized from a young age that this sterilized, safe, and modern world is unnatural and toxic to men. We were evolved to live in a much more dangerous world, which is the world of our Ancestral Environment. The idea of the “perimeter” is hardwired into all of our psyches due to billions of years of evolution. We are made to live in a world where two regions exist: The space inside the perimeter; and the space outside the perimeter. In modern times, there is no perimeter, as every last inch of the world has been conquered and turned into a safe space. The elimination of perimeters has had profoundly negative effects on men.
The natural roles of men have almost been made extinct in modernity due to the elimination of the perimeter. In the Ancestral Environment, men and their gangs had the roles of establishing, protecting, and expanding the perimeter of the tribe. This was a role that was always exclusive to men. In the tribe, only men ventured outside of the borders of the perimeter. Women always stayed within the relative safety of the perimeter. Every activity outside of the perimeter was performed by men, including hunting, exploring, waging war, and expanding territory. Men were responsible for protecting the women, children, and elderly inside the perimeter. The existence of the perimeter made men the de facto leaders of the tribe because establishing and protecting the perimeter was the most important duty in the tribe. Without a strong perimeter, the security of the entire tribe was at risk. Without security and safety, every other concern of the tribe fell by the wayside.
The sacred and absolutely essential role of men as protectors of the tribe has been all but eliminated in modernity due to the removal of perimeters. A man’s natural role of protector has been stolen from him and given to the State and the Police.
Further, the elimination of the perimeter has also eroded a man’s natural role is a provider to women and children. Since only men ventured outside of the perimeter to hunt and search for resources, it was always men that were bringing resources back to the tribe. Again, this made men essential to the survival of the tribe and placed them in the dominant and leadership roles. In modernity, women can just order everything they need from Amazon. Anything a woman cannot buy herself is provided to her by our Welfare State.
The “Strong Independent Woman” only exists in the unnatural world of modernity because we are evolved to live in a world where women could not survive without men. One thing that women are incapable of appreciating is how modernity and feminism has robbed men of their natural purpose in life. The male roles of protector and provider have been stolen from them, which has led to a large-scale existential crisis for men across the world. Women see modernity, feminism, androgyny, and equalism as “progress” because these things benefit women. Due to female solipsism, women are incapable of recognizing and understanding the plight of modern men caused by the removal a man’s natural reasons for existing.
The Tactical Virtues: Strength, Courage, Mastery, Honor
Another thing that women fail to realize or admit is that traits such as strength and courage are actually masculine traits. Since these traits are so desirable, women will never concede that these traits originate from men. Most people believe that there are no biological differences between men and women except for our sexual organs, which is the result of Jungian philosophy permeating our culture. In modernity we have millions of women trying to be bad versions of men and millions of men trying to be bad versions of women. However, nothing feminists do or say will ever change the primal fact that there are masculine traits that belong to men and feminine traits that belong to women.
All red-pill men can agree that Strength, Courage, Mastery, and Honor are desirable masculine traits. Donovan’s best idea in this section of the book is that Honor cannot exist outside of an Honor Group. Membership in a male gang is a prerequisite of having honor, and I completely agree with this. Honor only exists when you care about the opinions of other men in your group and you are judged by these same men. Through trials and tribulation, men receive honor not from themselves, but from the other male members of the group. This is why “honor” in modernity is mostly a joke. Modern men may claim to have honor, but it is only a self-evaluation that is unverifiable. Without a small and close-knit Honor Group that vouches for a man’s honor, based on years of experience together, a man’s claim to be honorable means nothing.
Being Good a Being a Man vs. Being a “Good Man“
Donovan makes an important distinction here. Being good at being a man includes being strong, courageous, having hunting and fighting skills, and being able to attract women. Being a “good man” is something entirely different. Donovan makes the point that being good at being a man is more important than being a good man. Being good at being a man is more objective and natural, and it’s based on evolution and the primal roles of men. If men want to get in touch with their masculinity, they should focus on the skills and activities that make them good at being a man.
Being a “good man” is entirely subjective. Women and the Feminine Imperative have their own ideas of what being a “good man” means, but of course these ideas only benefit women and entail a man being subservient to women. Donovan argues that men should ignore what society tell us is a “good man” and instead strive for being a “good man” as defined by our gang of men. I completely agree with Donovan here because everything our feminine society defines as a “good man” is for the benefit of others and not ourselves.
The Story of Rome
Donovan makes another good point here. He posits that all countries and civilizations started with a small gang of rabblerousing men, and I completely agree. He describes the creation of Rome, which began with Romulus and Remus. These brothers formed a gang of outlaws that defied the norms and rules of the time. They acquired women by conquering neighboring tribes and taking women from them. They were superior fighters and they slowly proliferated into establishing Rome and eventually the Roman Empire. Donovan’s point is that everything notable in human history was established by a gang of men that were considered brigands and outlaws by authorities of the time. The founding fathers of the United States were considered outlaws by the English. Donovan’s ultimate point, which he expands upon in his other books, is that the opinion of society means nothing because society always opposes men in gangs.
Our society and the Feminine Imperative goes to great lengths to prevent men from connecting with each other. An interesting phenomenon covered in other red-pill material, and somewhat covered by Donovan, is that women are able to cooperate as a giant collective group (The Sisterhood) better than men. I completely agree with this, and it’s because men are designed to cooperate in small gangs and not gigantic collective groups. Women attempt to install themselves in every male-only group on the planet for the purpose of preventing male gangs from forming. Monogamy, living with women, and the institution of marriage are all designed to pacify and pull men away from their male brethren.
The Bonobo Masturbation Society
I really like this idea presented by Donovan. As everyone does (or should) know, Chimpanzees are 99% genetically identical to humans. Many things can be learned about humans by studying the Chimpanzees. There are two kinds of Chimpanzees: the Bonobos and the Common Chimpanzee. While these chimps are similar in appearance, there is a very important distinction in their social structures. Common Chimpanzees have a patriarchal social structure controlled by males and Bonobos have a matriarchal social structure controlled by females.
Homo Sapiens have a natural, patriarchal social structure controlled by men. However, women, the Feminine Imperative, and left-wing idealism all push for (and have unfortunately established) a matriarchal society. This unnatural matriarchy we live in is responsible for nearly all of men’s modern problems, and has resulted in men committing suicide at five times the rate of women.
Starting a Gang
Donovan gives some pointers on how to start a gang that I have found useful. When choosing men for your gang, you must be able to rely on them in times of emergency. You need men that are willing to fight when it’s time to fight. Weak men should either be whipped into shape by others in the gang or expelled from the gang. It is important that men in the gang place loyalty to their brothers above loyalty to women and others outside of the gang. A man that is more loyal to a woman than his brothers should not be trusted or allowed to remain in the gang. This man is also naive and misguided because a woman’s innate hypergamy prevents her from ever having true loyalty to a man. A man can only find true loyalty and trust in other men.
What’s Best in Life
I agree with Donovan’s assessment of what is best in life for men. Women always try to domesticate a man, forcing him into an emasculated, boring life of 9-to-5 monotony and the repetition of Groundhog Day until his death. What men really want is adventure, danger, risk, adversity, exploration, and victory. These desires are natural and hardwired into a man. Women and our feminine controlled society labels everything masculine, and the natural pursuits of men, as “toxic” and “dangerous”. But, as men, we should not care about what women and feminized men say and think. We know what we want and we should band together with other men to go after it.
Donovan’s Book is Written at a High School Level
The fact that Donovan dropped out of college likely explains this. Writing books at a lower reading level often leads to more book sales because it appeals to a larger audience. I can’t say that a book written at a lower level is less profound per se. However, I do prefer books written at a higher level. For example, Rollo Tomassi, the author “The Rational Male”, has a masters degree in Psychology, and this is definitely reflected in his more intelligent and sophisticated writing. “The Way of Men” is maybe 20% as intelligent and profound as “The Rational Male”.
When a book is written at a higher level, more information is packed into it, and the ideas are more profound. High level writing can convey an important point in one sentence whereas it will take five or more sentences to convey the same point with low level writing. When more sophisticated language is used, the points being made by the author are described in greater detail, and the reader gains more understanding of the message.
Conclusion
The “Way of Men” is a must read for every red-pill man.
Donovan’s ideas of the “gang” and the “perimeter” have greatly furthered my knowledge and understanding of what it is to be a natural, masculine man. Donovan assaults the individualist religion that is promoted in our society, which is something that confronted me and my beliefs personally. However, we must always strive to be confronted and challenged in order to grow. Ultimately, I agree with Donovan’s assessment that the pinnacle of masculinity exists through membership of a gang, and it cannot be fully realized by an isolated man.
Myself, and every other man, needs to challenge our own indoctrination in individualism if it prevents us establishing close bonds with other men. The powerful in this country know that an isolated man is much easier to control than a group of men, and this why they promote individualism. There is only one way out of the ignorant misery of the blue pill and this feminized society, and it is through establishing close bonds with other like-minded red-pill men.
A man cannot take on the Feminine Imperative alone. He needs brothers-in-arms to combat the effects of this feminized society that is neverendingly assaulting him. The male gang is a man’s salvation from this ridiculous, androgynous, feminized, overly emotional, and sensitive society we live in. Donovan’s ideas of the “gang” and the “perimeter” alone are enough to have me recommend this book as required reading.