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Alpha and beta male

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Beta male, or simply beta, is a pejorative term derived from the designation for beta animals in ethology. It is associated with men perceived as weak and emasculated. The term has been frequently used in the manosphere. Beta frequently applies to men who are associated with feminism or men who are not assertive, particularly with women. Andrew Marantz wrote for the New Yorker that conspiracy theorist and blogger Mike Cernovich believes that his opponents were "beta males, losers, or 'cucks' — alt-right slang for 'cuckolds'". Tracy Clark-Flory wrote for Salon that she prefers the words "sensitivity, emotional intelligence, and peacemaking" to "beta".

History

The term was used almost solely in animal ethology prior to the 1990s, particularly in regard to mating privileges with females, ability to hold territory and hierarchy in terms of food consumption within their herd or flock. Using the term "alpha" and "beta" in reference to humans originated in the mid to late 1990s after media outlets introduced the term. A 1996 article in USA Today wrote "take a powder, sensitive guy". In the animal kingdom beta refers to an animal who is subordinate to higher-ranking member in the social hierarchy thus having to wait to eat and having negligible or no opportunities for copulation.

Culture

An Esquire article mentioned the term saying "alpha males were putting the 'man' back in manhood". In 1999, Naomi Wolf, political advisor of Al Gore and Bill Clinton, according to Time "has argued internally that Gore is a 'Beta male' who needs to take on the 'Alpha male' in the Oval Office before the public will see him as the top dog". Beta males have become an onscreen archetype of a villain and also have been portrayed on shows such as Broadchurch. Caricatures of beta males and incels sometimes includes suggestions of a "Beta Uprising", wherein men who are unsuccessful at courtship rebel against mainstream or what they view as privileged members of society.

The March 7, 2018, issue of the Hollywood Reporter has as its cover the cast of the TV show Silicon Valley, together with the title "The Triumph of the Beta Male".

See also

References

  1. Roy, Jessica (16 November 2016). "'Cuck,' 'snowflake,' 'masculinist': A guide to the language of the 'alt-right'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  2. Marantz, Andrew (31 October 2016). "Trolls for Trump". The New Yorker. Retrieved 18 April 2017.
  3. Lerner, Kira (2017-04-04). "Donald Trump Jr. says Pizzagate conspiracy theorist deserves a Pulitzer". ThinkProgress. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  4. Clark-Flory, Tracy. "In praise of the "beta male"". Salon. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  5. Gese, Eric M., Robert L. Ruff, and Robert L. Crabtree. "Foraging ecology of coyotes (Canis latrans): the influence of extrinsic factors and a dominance hierarchy." Canadian Journal of Zoology 74.5 (1996): 769-783.
  6. Davies, N. B. "Cooperation and conflict among dunnocks, Prunella modularis, in a variable mating system." Animal Behaviour 33.2 (1985): 628-648
  7. Dowd, Maureen (1999-11-03). "Liberties; The Alpha-Beta Macarena". The New York Times. Retrieved 2017-04-21.
  8. Singal, Jesse (2016-05-18). "How America Became Infatuated With a Cartoonish Idea of 'Alpha Males'". New York. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  9. Michael Hogan (18 April 2017). "Broadchurch season 3 finale recap: this series was about modern masculinity gone horribly wrong". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  10. Crucchiola, Jordan (2017-04-13). "Toxic Nice Guys Are Hollywood's New Favorite Villain". Vulture. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  11. "What is a beta uprising? • r/OutOfTheLoop". reddit. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  12. Dewey, Caitlin (7 October 2015). "Incels, 4chan and the Beta Uprising: making sense of one of the Internet's most-reviled subcultures". Retrieved 19 January 2018 – via www.WashingtonPost.com.
  13. "The Hollywood Reporter 'Triumph Of The Beta Male' Cover Is A Bad Sign". The Federalist. 2018-03-08. Retrieved 2018-03-08.
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