Anal sexuality and male subcultures online: The politics of self-deprecation in the deep vernacular web

Abstract

This article focuses on the prominence of dirt and excrements in online male subcultures. It offers an understanding of both the computer nerd cultures of the 4chan forum and Incel (acronym for “Involuntary celibate”) forums that is grounded in their displays of anal sexuality. The article traces the development of this sexuality from the sadistic-aggressive acts of discharge characteristic of 4chan to the masochistic displays of self-deprecation in Incel forums. Whereas the former serve to draw boundaries between the subcultural sphere and that of the cultural mainstream, the latter take the provocative performance of sexual immaturity towards a point of catastrophic loss of control. These performances have political implications, in which the fantasy of being out of control in particular moves Incel culture close to right extremism in that, it is argued, it anticipates a fatalistic act of vengeance against those who are given the blame for one’s castrated state. It is in this respect, I argue, that Incel culture must be seen as an extreme variation of online male subcultures.