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There has been an evolution of the tough guy. Gone are the days of "The Duke," where masculinity should be maxed out. I haven't seen enough of John Wayne to know his full range of emotions, but my guess is that the modern tough guy has a sensitive side unlike that of the tough guy of the past. Most of this is in line with our own culture. Sure, we value masculinity, but only if it's tempered with fatherly or brotherly "softer" sides, if you will.
We have a higher value for compassion and thinking now than we do for purely taking action. The "refined gentleman" is no longer viewed as a "pansy" or "dandy," at least not at large, especially when said gentleman knows how to hold his own in fight.
We no longer demand a man's man, or a lady's man, for that matter. We now look up to men who are balanced and have integrity that is compatible with what's acceptable in our society today. Times change. It's not as acceptable now to just slug someone was it may have been decades ago. We now expect that as a last resort or on an as-needed basis. Just slugging someone now is viewed as brutish, short-tempered, and, in a way, weak.
We now value a new kind of discipline in men. I do, at least.
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Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing?
—Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön
Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
—From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot
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