r/NoFap mudding the anti-feminist waters: the (diluted) manosphere strikes back

Abstract

NoFap is widely understood as a self-improvement movement centered on abstaining from pornography and “excessive masturbation”, primarily embraced by heterosexual men seeking to improve their health, relationships, productivity, and regain self-control over their masculinity through discipline based on abstention challenges. Although the community positions itself as a space for personal growth and respect for women, literature has identified its engagement with heterosexist, patriarchal, and misogynistic discourses. Scholars have compared NoFap to more radical anti-feminist manosphere groups, suggesting the manosphere can be conceptualized as a spectrum of ideologies and practices. Stretching Bridges and Pascoe’s (2014) concept of hybrid masculinities, this paper argues that r/NoFap operates as a “hybrid manosphere”, discursively distancing itself from overt manosphere affiliation while strategically borrowing from its ideologies. This allows members to position themselves as “good guys” while simultaneously engaging with oppressive discourses related to gender, power, and sexuality. The effect is the creation and expansion of a sort of ‘diluted’ manosphere, where some core manosphere ideologies are watered down with seemingly more ‘moderate’ positions, while still subtly reinforcing them.

Keywords: NoFap, manosphere, hybrid masculinity, online misogyny, pornography.