Short Shorts: Men at Leisure PRE-ORDER

PRE-ORDER available now. Books ship by December 2025.

Shorts are so…informal. Leisure is so…lazy. For centuries, Western culture gave precedence to pants over shorts, and work has been pushed as the purpose of life at the expense of rest. Real men wore pants regardless of the task, job, or weather. Out in a field tilling the soil—pants. Sitting at a desk in an office in front of a computer—pants. Going to the beach or for a swim—pants, and even a shirt. Much of this comes down to a moral affinity for clothing that covers and is modest, or garments that are more protective. Certainly, there are some industries and tasks when covering up is helpful and necessary, but the dominance of pants in Western society was prescribed to men regardless of thoughtful consideration for the situation, that is, until the early 19th century.

Modesty as a standard of society began to change along with people’s moral perspectives heading into the 19th century. In the post-Industrial Revolution era people began to seek more meaning and joy in life. Labor strikes and movements were common leading up to World War I, culminating in and alongside the Women’s Rights Movement and passing of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote. This progressive era carried over into the Roaring ’20s—a time of pushback between traditional and progressive values. Men at this point were still dressing modestly into the ’30s, with the exclusion of a rising wealthier and middle class that had more time and financial liberty for sports and leisure. With these activities came a gradual shift from pants to shorts for sport and swimming. Styles were more modest at first, with many men still wearing longer shorts and shirts, or full body one-piece swimsuits. But the shift had begun and continued to develop through World War II, the post-World War II ’50s, and into the free-spirited cultural revolution of the ’60s and ’70s. With each passing decade fashion shifted, traditional morals loosened, and shorts on men got a little bit shorter.

Fashion changes, but the short shorts of the mid-19th century have stuck around. Functional, sporty, cooling, and, now, nostalgic, short shorts are part of the history of change on stylistic and moral progression. Short Shorts: Men at Leisure is an homage to the men of the past and a celebration of a style still alive and well today. These are our father’s shorts, and they are here to stay.