This fashion column comes by way of The Sopris Stars, a new monthly youth publication powered by The Sopris Sun.
A wolf in a sheep’s skin, except it’s not an actual wolf but a guy with a Lububu keychain dangling off the side of his tote bag or on the clasp of his car keys. He may appear gentle, emotionally grounded and overall curated, yet his outer-persona lacks what means the most: who he is beneath the surface. This is, more or less, the definition of a “performative male,” an archetype sweeping the internet through memes and social media posts.
The performative male often borrows popular trends and symbols to construct their “character.” Some particular give-aways are: incessant ordering of matcha lattes (preferably iced and from a local cafe); wearing quarter-zipped pullovers (or really anything with a collar at this point); wielding a Penguin Classics book with elements of feminism (“The Bell Jar” by Sylvia Plath comes to mind — spoiler: He only made it to page 81); or pontificating Lana Del Ray poetry to further “understand” you.
Women are drawn to connections that feel sincere. And who doesn’t want someone who appears educated and neatly assembled? These traits can signal emotional maturity. But what if the socio-cultural markers that define this persona are just a hook to undermine the female gaze?
To gain further insight into this social stereotype highlighted on countless TikTok feeds, The Sopris Stars spoke with a few local high schoolers.
One student described the trend as “cringy.”
Another, Betsy Joya, added that it’s all a performance, from the artificial personality to the inevitable manipulative behavior. She said that performative tendencies end up causing trust issues.
Another respondent, Kevin Castillo, said bluntly, “I think a good amount of guys are definitely performative to some level. And it’s just so clear, and funny, to see how they immediately change the way they act when they’re surrounded by other guys versus when there is a woman present.”
Castillo said that propensities of the performative male can range from comical to repulsive, and that their purpose is to impress, rather than truly get to know someone.
It’s clear that these accounts raise a social issue of framing attraction and fellowship with a schematic script. It also furthers a concern of whether Gen Z is facing a crisis of autonomy by constructing archetypes through a prefaced facade. May these elements simply attract the male interest?
It’s important to reiterate that this is but another social media trend (#performativemale), and probably should be taken with a grain of salt. Just because a young man likes some of the things associated with the stereotype doesn’t necessarily make them a performative male. So go ahead and love on your Lububus, drink iced matcha lattes, and just remember to always be yourself.