Men Going Their Own Way

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MGTOW logo as shown in episode "Men at War" of the BBC series Reggie Yates' Extreme UK[1]

Men Going Their Own Way (MGTOW /ˈmɪɡtaʊ/) is a mostly pseudonymous online community[2][3] supported by websites and social media presences[4] cautioning men against serious romantic relationships with women, especially marriage.[5][6] The community is part of what is more broadly termed the manosphere.[7]

Beliefs[edit]

MGTOW use the word gynocentric to describe conditions that favor women to the detriment of men, and are opposed to such circumstances.[8][6] MGTOW believe that there is a systemic gynocentric bias against men including double standards in gender roles, bias against men in family courts, lack of concern for men falsely accused of rape and lack of consequences for their accusers.[9]

Views on heterosexual relationships[edit]

According to the columnist Martin Daubney, members of the MGTOW community believe that legal and romantic entanglements with women fail a cost–benefit analysis and risk–benefit analysis.[10] Jeremy Nicholson, writing for Psychology Today, similarly described MGTOW as "guys who have been frustrated and punished to the point that they see no further incentive to relate [to dating] [...], they focus on making themselves happy".[11] Kay Hymowitz has stated that some self-identified MGTOW express discontent because they see women as hypergamous and manipulative.[12] The Business Insider reporter Dylan Love wrote a "fully-realized MGTOW (there are levels to it) is someone who shuns all relationships with women, short-term, long-term, romantic, and otherwise. He eventually shuns society as a whole."[13] Some MGTOW have many short-term casual relationships or engage in sex with prostitutes.[9] Celibacy, however, is also an option. A MGTOW that chooses celibacy over sex and relationships is said to be "going monk"[14] and some embrace maintaining their virginity.[15][16]

Relationship to other groups[edit]

MGTOW focus on self-ownership rather than changing the status quo, distinct from the men's rights movement.[9] MGTOW see feminists, "white knights", "social justice warriors", the LGBT rights movement and support for safe spaces as obstacles to male self-ownership.[15] MGTOW have been criticized by the seduction community for being cult-like, antithetical to human nature, and likened to separatist feminism.[9] MGTOW have a reciprocal disdain for the seduction community.[9] Politically, MGTOW have been variously associated with libertarianism,[15] the alt-right,[15][17] and philosophical anarchism.[9]

Herbivore men[edit]

According to Roselina Salemi, writing for La Repubblica, the Japanese concept of herbivore men is a subset of MGTOW.[18] Mack Lamoureux writing in Vice sees herbivore men as a consequence of Japanese socioeconomic conditions and MGTOW as an ideological choice.[4] In a DELFI article MGTOW are described as a protest against feminist laws in the West whereas herbivore men are a response to traditional gender roles in Japan, such as those of salarymen.[19] Isaac Simpson writing for Animals magazine likens MGTOW to a Western version of Japanese herbivore men with the caveat that herbivore men are typically not angry, politically motivated or engaged in criticism of gender roles.[20] Kashmira Gander writing for The Independent sees herbivore men serving as role models for MGTOW.[15]

See also[edit]

Notes and references[edit]

  1. ^ "Men at War". Reggie Yates' Extreme UK. Season 1. Episode 2. January 12, 2016. 22 minutes in. BBC. BBC Three. 
  2. ^ McCarthy, James (November 22, 2015). "David Sherratt, 18, is a men's rights activist who won't have casual sex in case he is falsely accused of rape". Wales Online. Retrieved December 31, 2015. 
  3. ^ Doyle, Paulie (January 5, 2017). "How 'Fight Club' Became the Ultimate Handbook for Men's Rights Activists". Broadly. Vice Media. Archived from the original on January 6, 2017. Retrieved February 10, 2017. 
  4. ^ a b Lamoureux, Mack (September 24, 2015). "This Group of Straight Men Is Swearing Off Women". Vice. Retrieved December 30, 2015. 
  5. ^ Wilcox, Bradford (May 18, 2016). "Maxim Masculinity: One Legacy of the Divorce Revolution". Family Studies. Institute for Family Studies. Retrieved October 25, 2017. 
  6. ^ a b Perrins, Laura (May 24, 2016). "Feminists and male supremacists have much in common – both are wrong". The Conservative Woman. Archived from the original on May 26, 2016. Retrieved February 14, 2017. 
  7. ^ Goldwag, Arthur (Spring 2012). "Leader's Suicide Brings Attention to Men's Rights Movement". Intelligence Report. Southern Poverty Law Center (145). Retrieved April 6, 2015. 
  8. ^ Daubney, Martin (November 24, 2015). "George Lawlor's story shows how universities have become hostile towards men". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved January 14, 2016. 
  9. ^ a b c d e f C. Brian Smith (September 28, 2016). "The Straight Men Who Want Nothing to Do With Women". MEL Magazine. Archived from the original on February 14, 2017. 
  10. ^ Daubney, Martin (November 15, 2015). "Meet the men giving up on women". The Sunday Times. Retrieved December 30, 2015. As a result of these views, such men are making logical, factual and cost-benefit-based decisions about women, dating and sex – and their brutally stark conclusion is that it's simply not worth the risk, expense or effort. 
  11. ^ Nicholson, Jeremy (April 3, 2012). "Why Are Men Frustrated With Dating?". Psychology Today. Retrieved January 8, 2016. 
  12. ^ Hymowitz, Kay (February 27, 2011). "Why Are Men So Angry?". The Daily Beast. Retrieved December 30, 2015. 
  13. ^ Love, Dylan (September 15, 2013). "Inside Red Pill, The Weird New Cult For Men Who Don't Understand Women". Business Insider. Retrieved January 4, 2016. 
  14. ^ news.com.au (October 9, 2016). "The MGTOW group really, really don't like women". News.com.au. Archived from the original on October 8, 2016. Retrieved February 9, 2017. 
  15. ^ a b c d e Gander, Kashmira (September 27, 2016). "Inside the world of men who've sworn never to sleep with women again". The Independent. 
  16. ^ Palash Krishna Mehrotra (September 10, 2016). "Why people don't want to make babies anymore (except Indians)". DailyO. Retrieved February 9, 2017. 
  17. ^ Wilkinson, Abi (November 15, 2016). "We need to talk about the online radicalisation of young, white men". The Guardian. Retrieved February 13, 2017. 
  18. ^ Salemi, Roselina (January 12, 2016). "Finalmente soli". La Repubblica (in Italian). Retrieved February 8, 2016. Dentro c'è di tutto: 'erbivori' (nel senso di per nulla carnali) stile giapponese, ..." (Translated: "Among [the MGTOW] there are all sorts of things: 'herbivores' (meaning: no carnal relations) of the Japanese type, ... 
  19. ^ "Moterų minčių apie "tikrus vyrus" forumuose prisiskaitęs vaikinas: vyrai, susimąstykite". DELFI (in Lithuanian). October 12, 2015. Retrieved January 13, 2016. 
  20. ^ Simpson, Isaac (July 12, 2016). "Male Sexuality Approaching the Singularity: the Fighters, the Withdrawers, and the Pluggers-In". Animals. Archived from the original on February 3, 2017. Retrieved February 9, 2017. 

Further reading[edit]

  • Smith, Helen (2013). Men on Strike: Why Men Are Boycotting Marriage, Fatherhood, and the American Dream – and Why It Matters. New York: Encounter Books. ISBN 978-1-59403-675-0. 
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