Swallowing the rape myth: understanding rape mythology on The Red Pill

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

The realities of rape are crucial in highlighting the need for feminism in society. Yet, backlash against feminism is rife, and misconceptions about rape (“rape myths”) are ubiquitous. In this paper, I analyse whether rape myths are reflected in the manosphere’s central hub, The Red Pill, and theorise on how this may in turn reflect myths about rape in society. I analyse The Red Pill sidebar (a permanent ideological guide for community users) using reflexive thematic analysis underpinned by rape mythology as a theoretical framework. Through three themes centred around the sidebar’s enactment of masculinity (Alpha pursued), portrayal of the essential nature of women (The deceitful child), and the rejection of a mainstream woman-centred reality of claimed victimhood (Spitting out the gynocentric conspiracy), I illustrate that sidebar ideology is underpinned by rape myths. The Red Pill reflects rape mythology already present in society, and these rape myths are reflected back into the mainstream, strengthening social constructions of rape. Anti-feminist rape mythology on The Red Pill requires cultural scaffolding to resonate, but this community also serves to strengthen this scaffolding, insulating society from feminist ideas. Future research should focus on how scientific sexism scaffolds rape mythology and antifeminism.