Italian Men

Photo courtesy of my friend Fulvio

Whether it’s the actor Marcello Mastroianni or footballer Paolo Maldini, Italian men have certainly struck the fancy of women all over the world. And it’s not just these famous men who walk across our TV screens, Italian men in general seem to have the effect of the female equivalent of a couple of those famed blue pills. Myths abound about these men and they way they live the Italian life, but we’ll try to separate the fiction from reality.

Italian men have great manners

Well, this is no lie. The Italians, as a people are warm and friendly and the men are no different. They hold doors open for the fairer sex, treat the elderly with respect, pay on dates and in general are free with compliments and great talkers. Greetings are effervescent, with a kiss on both cheeks both at the beginning and end of a meeting, even for acquaintances. The men are unashamed to embrace each other and the Italian life and culture generally boasts a sense of warmth that pervades everyday interactions.

Italian men are famed to be great lovers, masters in the art of romance and extravagant flirts

I’ve been wondering for a while now if it’s true what they say about the ‘Italian Stallion’. The major consensus seems to be that Italians do ‘do it’ better. Well, this may be mostly due to the fact, that there’s so much pressure on them culturally and from the rest of the world to be great lovers, maybe they just get a lot of practice!

Italian men make you feel like you're the only woman in the world

In Italian life the men are brought up to have beautiful manners and with a culture that greatly reveres women, love and romance, Italians certainly know how to treat a woman. With irresistible charm, these Latin lovers can conquer women with one smoldering glance and woo within seconds. Whether they actually feel like you’re the only woman in the world, however, is quite another story.

Italian men can be very hot headed

All Latin men are thought to enjoy a passionate temperament. However, you’ll find that while a lot of these men have the qualities of being loving, warm, affectionate and demonstrative, most are simply like other men, with some hot headed among their number but not all.

Italian men have a reputation for infidelity

They seem to be famous for being polygamous. However, this may be due to the fact that Italy is a heavily Catholic country and divorces are still frowned upon. In Italian life it’s quite popular and even accepted for Italian men to take a mistress, witness Mr. Silvio Berlusconi’s example.

Italian men never totally grow up

They love being pampered and taken care of by their mothers. It’s quite well known about Italian men that they can be mama’s boys at times, in fact, a large percentage of men above 30 still live with their parents. However, a lot of young Italians are now choosing to live away from their parents before marriage and this again is more myth than a reflection of the reality of Italian life.
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Italian men are Tall, Dark, and Handsome

Women fantasize about Italian men with dark hair and olive skin. In reality, there are quite a few Italian men with fairly pale skin and light hair, quite a change from the Italian stereotype.

While some of the stereotypes on Italian men may have grains of truth, they certainly don’t apply to all Italian men all the time. All these myths about the Italian stallion and dark skinned heroes of Italian life should be taken with a grain of salt.

For more Italian myths check out 6 Common Misconceptions About Italy and Italians!