By Cruz Ferreira, Web Editor
Image Via Tessa Casper/The Occidental
The term “performative” describes men who follow typically feminine trends and who have donned feminist ideals in hopes of attracting women. Are these another form of posers, or is there more to these performative males than meets the eye?
To start, I’ve composed a list of common performative traits based on my sources. This includes accessories, clothes, and music:
- Wired earbuds/headphones
- Labubus
- Tote bags
- Crop tops
- Baggy pants
- Jorts (jean shorts)
- Vinyl records of music artists Mitski, Clairo, Laufey, and Beabadoobee
- Matcha Lattes
- Keychains/lanyard
- Feminist literature books
- Journaling in public spaces
Know Your Meme, a popular website known for its anonymous entries on popular memes and culture says, “Viral posts about men being performative surfaced en masse late 2024 and 2025. However, some posts from 2022 to early 2024 seemingly inspired the stereotype to later develop fully.” The idea behind this behavior has been around for quite some time. However, the idea of performance has grown more among generation z.
Alisha Haridasani Gupta and Nicole Stock, writers for The New York Times said, “The Performative Male curates his aesthetic in a way that he thinks might render him more likable to progressive women.” The definition is vain, but it’s how you tell the normal guy from a performative one. Their intentions are bad. For this reason, many people make fun of them online.
Hannah Garzon, a writer for Phil Star Life said, “There have been contests that poke fun at who can “outperform” the other, whether by carrying tampons “just in case,” or romanticizing rainy walks while listening to Mitski.” Performativity has turned satirical, and it’s easy to see why. It can be easy to fall into the performative male category if you happen to like a few “performative” things.
Senior Shaun Elchico, said “Prior to the explosion of performative–like in terms of social media, I did listen to, coincidentally, a lot of the music.” It’s important to note that everyone who drinks matcha isn’t always performative, nor is everyone who owns baggy pants, a vinyl record, or even a labubu (even though they’re odd-looking).
Senior Jesse Jimenez said, “We all have interests that we like to show off. I think everyone’s performative. You know, not every performative male is trying to do it for women.” Everyone has unique tastes that can be mistaken as performative. Many of the stereotypically performative accessories and music came long before the meme was popular.
To conclude, the performative male, in my opinion, is just another way guys try to entice girls, and most of the internet views them poorly. However that doesn’t mean that the music, clothes, and accessories associated with it have to be ruined too. Let people drink matcha, guys. And remember, don’t judge a book by its cover!
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