EXTREMISMWhat Does Netflix’s Drama “Adolescence” Tell Us About Incels and the Manosphere?
While Netflix’s psychological crime drama ‘Adolescence’ is a work of fiction, its themes offer insight into the very real and troubling rise of the incel and manosphere culture online.
“Have you been watching The Matrix?”
—Luke Bascombe, Adolescence
In episode two of Netflix’s ‘Adolescence’, the character Luke Bascombe has a conversation with his 15-year-old son who deciphers the meaning of different colored emojis on Instagram posts that are central to the murder investigation that Bascombe is leading. The significance of the different colors of the emojis results in the above epigraph. While this is one of the few moments of levity in the series, it serves as an illustration of a very important point. Namely, the intergenerational and cultural divide that prevents parents from understanding the real-world offline impact that online behaviors, language use, and sub-cultures are having on young people.
While the series is a clear work of fiction, it is incredibly well-researched, meaning that many of its themes can be used to explain real-life aspects of incels and the manosphere. Indeed, the success of ‘Adolescence’ can perhaps be attributed to three inter-related issues. First, the societal concern that comes with the increasing popularity of ideas and themes related to misogyny and the “manosphere”. Second, the impact on children and young people being constantly subjected to these online views and ideas while also experiencing the uncertainties and socialization processes that come with teenagerhood. Third, the concerns parents have about what their children are doing online in the privacy of their own rooms.
This short piece will elaborate on the aspects of the incel subculture covered in ‘Adolescence’ to provide an overview of the ideas and themes contained therein before going on to place this in the wider socio-political context.
What Does “Adolescence” Tell Us About Incels and the Manosphere?
The scene in ‘Adolescence’ described above does a good job of portraying how hard it can be to understand the linguistic practices and themes of online subcultures, and this is particularly difficult with incels. Indeed, the majority of the audience may not have heard the terms “incel”, “manosphere” or “redpill” before.
