[Quix]

A much larger percentage of a woman's brain is devoted to nuance, subtlty in verbal and nonverbal communication; emotional expression, perception and interpretation etc.

Emotions are a major portion of a woman's being, language, perceptions and constructions of the world, of reality.

Men get wound up over sports, sex, achievement/work/conquest. Men are more frightened of emotions than anything because one can't slice, dice, examine emotions anywhere near how one can examine, slice, measure, construct with a piece of wood, for example.

Emotions can't be controlled and by definition, if it can't be controlled, measured, packaged, analyized, then men are more likely to be at least wary of it, if not terrified of it whether consciouisly or unconsciously.

However, MEN ARE EMTIONAL creatures, too. But very differently so and in a variety of different ways and levels.

They are exceedingly tender and vulnerable in terms of their egos--especially in terms of their masculinity, potency, virility etc. They can hide it--some very well--under tons of bluster, bravado, toughness etc. And a wife may never know how deep her off hand phrase stabbed the knife to the heart--but it did. And many men have a hard time putting such minor things behind them and going back for more--with still again--a vulnerable heart tender toward their spouse.

[Eaker]

They are exceedingly tender and vulnerable in terms of their egos--especially in terms of their masculinity, potency, virility etc.

Nailed it!

The only person that can really hurt me is my wife of 18 years. Her opinion of me really matters.

I don't really care what others think.

[Woahhs]

A much larger percentage of a woman's brain is devoted to nuance, subtlty in verbal and nonverbal communication; emotional expression, perception and interpretation etc.

That's all well and good, but what are the practical implications of it? Your truck may be bigger than my car, with more capabilities, but it doesn't get you any more to a destination than mine will. Furthermore, why should I concede any superiority to your greater capacity on those occasions when you're not hauling anything, and you're using twice the fuel to get to the same place?

Men are more frightened of emotions than anything because one can't slice, dice, examine emotions anywhere near how one can examine, slice, measure, construct with a piece of wood, for example.

I think "frightened" is an inappropriate term. As you said, men are also emotional, so it's not as if they are ignorant of emotion. Men do mistrust emotional rationality, particularly when it's used to justify, for example, disdain of a hundred dollar gift for lack of two dollars worth of gift-wrapping. Much of the emotional rationality confronting men does bear a striking resemblance to looking the proverbial gift horse in the mouth, or making major issues from esoteric distinctions... particularly when those distinctions would be ignored under different circumstances.

They are exceedingly tender and vulnerable in terms of their egos--especially in terms of their masculinity, potency, virility etc. They can hide it--some very well--under tons of bluster, bravado, toughness etc.

This may or may not be. The question is how would you know? You've structured the dynamic in such a way as to presume the thing you're claiming.

If a man stoicly receives criticism, is it because he's hiding his true feelings, or because he just doesn't believe the criticism has merit? Indeed, may it even have been proffered for the express purpose of causing distress? Any criticism has only so much impact as the recipient has regard for the opinion of the critic.