Ok so this is a wierd title. Let me first ensure you that I recognize the vital need for lather, it is a must, on that we all b&bers will agree I am sure. But why, or rather how, is it vital?
The reason I'm asking this rather silly question is that I've encountered two conflicting theories as to why and how shaving lather works for the benefit of the shaving process. When I first started to learn wet-shaving I read that the lather was basically there in order to keep your face wet. Water, I learned, softened the hairs and made them easier to cut. This means that the lather was really just a way to suspend the water, making it stick to your face and stop it from evaporating too fast.
However, I got a small book/pamphlet called "The art of shaving or shaving made easy - what the man who shaves ought to know" from a good friend, and read it. Those unfamiliar with this wonderful little piece of literature I'll tell you that it is an old instruction book from 1905 that goes through the process of wet-shaving with a straight razor (though it mentions the precursors to modern safety razors). Anyhow, this book, rather than reinforcing my belief that lather was a way of applying water to the face to soften hairs, it was in fact almost opposite, or rather made to counter this. It explains how water makes it harder to cut ones hairs. Since the hair is already oily making it softer just makes it harder to cut it, it slips away from the blade easier the author argues. So, the shaving lather is there to remove the oil from the hairs, not wetting them.
Maybe this is obvious, maybe this is a ridiculous thread I've started. However, thing is that this is the first source I've read where water hasn't been named as the primary component to good wet-shaving. In all other research, from this forum to shaving vendors online, everywhere, lather has been explained as a way to suspend water. This seems a bit odd, especially when the author of The Art of Shaving states that it is a common misconception that softening hairs with water is a good thing.
My small wondering is if anyone knows which of these "theories" are correct. Is it so that the 1905 author just didn't get his facts right, or is it that we modern wet-shavers have lost some knowledge and are having misconceptions about lather and its' purpose?
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Lather, what is really its purpose?
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