Man, the Masterpiece (1886)

AUTHOR: Kellogg, John Harvey

PUBLICATION: Man, the Masterpiece, or, Plain Truths Plainly Told, about Boyhood, Youth and Manhood. Des Moines, IA: Condit & Nelson, 1886.
https://archive.org/details/manmasterpiece00kell

The summary below is based on this 1886 edition.

SUMMARY (Ridvan Askin, edited Deborah Madsen):

The book is primarily a guide to the proper physical, moral, and religious education of boys. Veganism is important as both the healthiest overall diet and a means to counteract moral ills such as sexual desire and intemperance. Kellogg's premise is that “[t]he human race is certainly growing weaker physically” ( v), which leads to both “physical and moral degeneracy” (vi). The book's stated aim is “to inspire the boys and young men of the rising generation with a higher regard for those bodies which the Almighty 'created in his own image,' and pronounced 'very good'; to encourage a greater love and respect for purity in thought and act; to help those whose aspirations are upward, by exposing the snares and evil enticements by which unwary youth are led astray; and thus to aid in the development of a higher, purer, and nobler type of manhood” (vi). Thus, physical health is essential to morality and the good life. The ills addressed include, but are certainly not limited to, misdirected education, bad diet and eating habits, intemperance, inappropriate views of marriage, sexual desire, and unhealthy clothing. The book also provides a survey of (male) anatomy and physiology, treatments and prescriptions for common illnesses, and general ideas on religion, morality, and ethics as they relate to what Kellogg thinks of as proper masculinity.

In relation to diet, Kellogg notes that children should not be allowed “highly flavored substances, such as sweetmeats, tidbits of every sort, and stimulating foods” (81). Similarly, to provide them with “liberal quantities of meat, is a practice which tends to the excitement of morbid and unwholesome tendencies, and is very often productive of disease” (82). And the “use of spices, pepper, mustard, vinegar, cloves, etc., is wholly uncalled for by a healthy taste” (82). Instead, “easily digestible grains, fruits, and milk” are the choice foods for children (82). Kellogg also  inveighs against “[v]icious tendencies” and habits: “The tobacco-using boy soon learns to drink beer and ale, from which it is an easy step to strong liquors and drunkenness” (87). In general, Kellogg thinks that “[n]o physical disease is more contagious than habits of mental and physical uncleanliness” (87). This is particularly true of sexual desire, “sensual vice, and … filthy imaginings and mental impurity” (88), from which children need to be protected. In fact, two extended chapters of the book are devoted to “Sexual Sins and their Consequences” (367-430) and “Diseases of the Sexual Organs” (431-520). In addition to “evil associations” (369), that is, the wrong kind of acquaintances and friends, “excessive use of flesh food and the use of condiments” range among the primary causes of sexual sin, particularly masturbation (372).

When it comes to food in general, Kellogg holds that “[i]f a man eats gross food, his blood will be gross, his tissues will be gross, his brain will be gross, and he will have gross thoughts, and very likely will commit gross acts” (215-216), quoting A. Bronson Alcott in this context: “'The man who lives chiefly upon hog is in danger of becoming piggified'” (216). “A man,” Kellogg continues, “whose bill of fare consists chiefly of flesh food, must expect to find himself more nearly related to the animal in his instincts than the man who satisfies his palate with milk, fruits, and farinaceous seeds, – the primitive diet of the human family” (216). He also upholds several (historical) figures as models to emulate in their veg*nism, including Pythagoras, Plato, Seneca, Newton, Byron, Shelley, Benjamin Franklin, Wendell Phillips, and Bronson and Louisa May Alcott. He also explicitly notes his own veg*nism (224).

Kellogg expends considerable space on the physical, moral, and social ills of alcohol and tobacco use (265-289 and 290-308, respectively). As to tobacco, in a racist invective, he blames “the wild barbarians of America” as the originators of the habit (291), wondering “[h]ow so filthy, unnatural, and eminently disgusting a habit could ever have been cultivated by rational beings” (292), referring, in contrast, to Europeans. He also discusses  an array of materials, fabrics, and clothing items with respect to whether they are conducive or detrimental to health. In general, clothing should allow for unimpeded movement and good circulation of air. He also thinks it is best “to discard” feather beds (348).