Andrew Tate, Fresh and Fit, and the Whatever Podcast are all content creators with one thing in common: audience. They publish their content into a space of the internet that is called the manosphere, promoting the idea that physical appearance, intense masculinity, wealth, control (primarily over women) establish a man’s worth.
‘Red pill’ is a term coming from the 1999 film, The Matrix, symbolizing choosing to see reality in comparison to the option of a blue pill, which symbolizes choosing to be ignorant. In the context of the manosphere, “taking the red pill” means awakening yourself to ideals that they believe such as; feminism oppressing men, societal structures such as custody and divorce are aimed towards men, and that women are biologically manipulative.
I conducted a survey as well as several interviews, to see where different age groups align with topics that often draw young men into red pill content. 74 people responded, 40 were seniors, 12 were juniors, 5 were sophomores, and 3 freshman. 14 responses were from non students, which can be anyone who is not currently in school.
what do you think is the biggest challenge m
en face today in dating?
21 (28.4%) responded with option A, not emotionally available. 13 (17.6%) responded with option C, unrealistic expectations from women. 29 people (39.7%) responded with option D, social media’s affect on relationships. One person, a non student, responded with option B, unsuccessful financial status, while others took to respond in the open ended line.
“Social Media’s affect on relationships – in the way that a lot of men (and women/etc) fall for social media’s bubble of ‘this is how things have to be’ or ‘this is what it means'” – Josselin C, 12th
Some shorter open ended responses include:
“Unrealistic expectations from both genders.” – Non student
“lack of support system from male friends” – Cassie, 12th.”’
“The toxic masculinity pushed onto us” – Anthony, 12th.
“All of the above” – Zeno, 12th
should emotional expression be more encouraged in men?
56 (76.7%) responded with option A yes, healthy and essential, while 15 (20.5%) responded with option B, to a certain extent/it should be balanced. The majority of people who responded with option B were upperclassmen.
should men be expected to pay on the first date?
22 people (29.7%) responded with no, both should contribute equally. 21 responded that it depends on who invited who. 20 people (27%) responded with yes, its traditional/masculine.
This question split up most of the responses.
“I think its a nice gesture, i probably wouldn’t mind paying for the first date, but its not necessary.” – Non student
“It’s dependent on what each person wants in the other. Some want to be independent and others want to be taken care of.” – Michael, 12th
“Hopefully both parties can decide who will be doing what on the date. And what if two men are on a date, do they both pay?” – Non student.
“Paying on the first date doesn’t mean your masculine but it’s traditional.” – Javier, 11th
Most people who responded open ended fell into the category of those who believed it can go either way, and in cases of queer relationships, doesn’t matter.
do you think dating apps have improved modern relationships?
55 (74.3%) responded with no, we are more distant now than ever before. 8 (10.8%) responded with yes because it is the easiest its ever been to communicate, while the the rest responded in open ended responses.
“No, the ability to view relationships as easily accessible and interchangeable via an app is incredibly harmful.” – Will, 12th
“It helped in some cases, but most of them just strengthen hook up culture.” – Non student
“Its a double-edged sword from both of the above reasons.” – Non student
do you think men and women want the same or different things in relationships?
21 people (28.4%) responded with the same because most people want similar connection. 14 people (18.95) responded that they want different things because men and women are just naturally separate. 31 people (41.9%) responded with neither, gender doesn’t matter as much as personality.
Some of the other responses given were:
“Same, both are trying to find a connection within a relationship and others both genders are to find someone to not be bored. Depends on the person.” – Ella, 12th
“well if they ended up in a relationship they mostly want the same thing i mean its a conversation that every couple has before commiting to a relationship either way its a long one or just a “hooking up on holidays” – David, 12th
“I think men and woman do tend to have different expectations, but thats society influencing them to have those beliefs. It’s not a natural occurrence.” – Michael, 12th
anything you want to add/mention:
“The religion and where a person grew up affects their belief systems. The boys who fall into red pill content usually do so because they grew up in conservative and Christian households. In turn, when those kids are introduced to alt-right content online, it appeals to the bias they have.” Michael, a student, responded.
“I think first, men need to set a good example for each ither and form meaningful, supportive friendships before hey should have expectations for romantic relationships.” Senior, Cassie, replied to the question, “I also think it’s very important to mention that misogynistic red pill content is overrepresented on the internet because the ‘normal guys’ don’t feel the need to create a sense of power by getting strangers to agree with their worldview. The pipeline is very real and it seems to me that its very easy to get sucked into it if you’re a lonely guy. There needs to be more positive male role models to offset this.”
“I think the main concern today is that man are having problems identifying their role in the new world. I think the men / woman roles are going through a big shift and we have to identify that. Hence some men are becoming “hyper feminine” or joining the performative male movement, while some are trying to go back in time and support ideologies promoted by “hyper men” such as Andrew Tate. Personally, we should admit that men and woman are at the end of the day both humans and by that I mean there is no real difference between genders only the ones that the past centuries have created. Gender shouldnt determine the way you act towards anyone. Everyone should do the obvious and be themselves, promote love and help where they can for their fellow humans. ” A non student answered.
conclusion
Though these questions don’t actually determine people’s stances on red pill content, or even if they have a possibility of falling down the pipeline later in life, it shows how they might respond when asked about it currently. When asked face to face about red pill content, many students (primarily freshmen and sophomores) didn’t know what it was and had no interest in learning. Doing the survey online hopefully gave people the freedom to express their opinion without the confrontation of being voice recorded.
sources:
https://www.unwomen.org/en/articles/explainer/what-is-the-manosphere-and-why-should-we-care
https://www.equimundo.org/resources/manosphere-rewired/
