The Most Manly Authors of All Time: A Definitive List
5. Mark Twain
He served as a steamboat captain, a confederate soldier, and a miner. His novels captured the spirit of an era during one of the most exciting times in American history. His canonical works (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn) have helped shape generations of boys into men and he is considered by many to be the father of American literature. Mark Twain earns a spot as the fifth most manly author of all time.
After growing up in poverty, being incarcerated for robbery, and serving in the air force — Hunter S. Thompson began his career as a writer. With his erratic, first hand inventive style of “Gonzo Journalism”, Thompson dedicated himself to what many would consider “method acting” for writers. His breakout text was “Hell’s Angels: The Strange and Terrible Saga of the Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs”. One day while cruising around in his old convertible Cadillac, a mountain lion jumped into his vehicle and he defended himself (and killed the animal) by using nothing but a hammer all whilst continuing to drive his vehicle. While in Zaire, Hunter was given highly-sought after tickets to the Ali-Foreman fight and gave them up (some say for an herbal remedy…) and instead decided to search the nearby jungle for a runaway Nazi war criminal. He ran with A-listers such as Johnny Depp and Jack Nicholson, ran for sheriff, got beat up by the Hell’s Angels, and even freed a wrongfully convicted woman from prison. As if to make one last statement, his ashes were put in a cannon and shot off a rooftop. Hunter S. Thompson earns a place as the fourth most manly author of all time.
He is the famed author of what is the first modern novel and many consider to be the greatest of all time — Don Quixote de la Mancha. The Spanish writer first served in the navy infantry where he was later to be captured by pirates and enslaved for five years. After gaining freedom he was incarcerated for three years. He was shot three times (2 in the chest) which left his left arm useless. He had a tendency to critique his contemporaries, and more boldly—authority. Miguel de Cervantes is arguably the most influential writer of all time and for that—he earns a spot as the third most manly author of all time.
This one might come as a surprise for some, most of us think of ol’ Bully as a brazen and boisterous politician and forget about Roosevelt the author. In reality he was a prodigious author who wrote 18 books and served as editor for “Outlook” magazine. At the age of 42 he was the youngest American to become president (and one of the best at that). With an expedition he killed and trapped thousands of African wildlife all in the name of “science”. He was colonel of the infamous “Rough Riders” and as president spoke out against the influences of large corporations. Roosevelt was shot in the chest while giving a speech and decided to finish the rest of it before seeking medical attention. He defended minorities and immigrants and at the same time called for a sense of nationalism and American pride. President Roosevelt earns a spot as the second most manly author of all time.
He is the author who would put even Dos Equis’ “Most Interesting Man in the World” to shame. He’s written works on everything from life’s deepest subjects (For Whom The Bell Tolls) to whimsical “How-to’s” on writing, fly fishing, and being a man. He’s hunted lions, water buffalo and grizzlies. The man was a prodigious fisherman and caught record breaking fish. He survived a mortar blast in WWI and later in life decided to mount a machine gun on his fishing boat he named “Pilar” so he could take out German submarines (and sharks of course). Using Pilar Hemingway went on several scientific expeditions that resulted in findings for the Smithsonian Institution. While living in Paris he ran with the likes of Gertrude Stein and James Joyce. Hemingway loved boxing and his toughness helped him survive two plane crashes. Like all men he was not perfect, but in many ways he and his works epitomize manhood and have helped define generations of men. Ernest Hemingway tops off the list as the most manly author of all time.
Images have been sourced from Wiki Commons.
Originally published at www.austinraymiller.com on October 18, 2014.
