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The original and most commonly-used logo for MGTOW is based on a familiar road sign, and also alludes to the symbol for masculinity.

Men Going Their Own Way (abbreviated MGTOW, pronounced /ˈmɪg.taʊ/), sometimes also called the marriage strike, the marriage boycott, or the sexodus, is a worldwide social phenomenon and community of heterosexual men who uphold a personal philosophy which rejects gynocentrism in favor of a value system of male self-determination and self-preservation, and who consequently choose a lifestyle which avoids legal and romantic entanglements with women, including, at the very least, marriage, cohabitation, and procreation. A participant in MGTOW is called a Man Going His Own Way (abbreviated MGHOW, pronounced /ˈmɪg.haʊ/). In Japan, MGTOW are known as herbivore men or grass-eater men.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]

As Sunday Times journalist Martin Daubney has pointed out[10][11], according to Google Trends, interest in "MGTOW" has grown exponentially since 2009; doubling approximately every 12 months[12], it has rapidly overtaken both "women's rights" and "men's rights", as well as "radical feminism" in search popularity. It has been estimated that the MGTOW arm of the so-called "manosphere" is not only its largest segment, but also its fastest growing.[13] Renowned family care activist Erin Pizzey has described MGTOW as "very powerful" and "almost epidemic".[14]

Definition[edit]

Because it is a decentralised social phenomenon and a community, MGTOW does not have any leaders, spokesmen, by-laws, official publications, official manifesto, or organizational structure, which can make the concept contentious, ambiguous, and difficult to define. The concept of MGTOW is thus primarily defined and refined by the MGTOW community itself, by means of articles, conversations, and debates in self-published books, websites, blogs, web forums, and online videos. Authors that have researched the phenomenon, such as Kay Hymowitz, have recommended examining MGTOW websites, including MGTOW.com, NoMarriage (now defunct), and EternalBachelor, for readers interested in this matter.[15][16][17].

According to MGTOW.com, MGTOW are men who share a specific view, philosophy, or school of thought with regard to modern society, romantic relationships, and women in general. According to this website, while the specific wording may differ among individuals, generally accepted definitions within the MGTOW community include:[18]

  • A man who preserves and protects his self-ownership and personal sovereignty.
  • A man who avoids cultural definitions and preconceptions of what a "man" is.
  • A man who looks to no one for social approval.
  • A man who does not allow anyone to treat him as a disposable utility.
  • A man who lives according to his own best interests, rather than society's expectations.

Basic concepts[edit]

One essential tenet of MGTOW is the avoidance of legal entanglements with women, including, at the very least, marriage, cohabitation, and procreation. The percentage of unmarried males in America (and many other countries worldwide) has steadily increased since the early 1970s, such that, as of 2015, 70% of American males between 20 and 34 years old are not married; according to Janice Shaw Crouse, author of the book "Marriage Matters", this may have ominous consequences for the future.[19]

In addition, many MGTOW to varying degrees choose to abandon romantic relationships, casual sexual relationships, female friendships, and/or social contact with women altogether.[20] These phenomena are known as going ghost[21][22] (or, less commonly, as going monk[23]). In Japan's herbivore men phenomenon, an extreme form of men going ghost is known as hikikomori.[24]

Being free from the necessity of supporting a wife and familiy, many MGTOW to varying degrees choose to reject the traditionally male gender role of breadwinner, refrain from dangerous or stressful careers, minimize the duration of their workweek, reduce their tax burden, lead a frugal and minimalistic lifestyle, opt for entrepreneurship or freelancing instead of permanent employment, while some even sever their dependence on the grid, expatriate to countries where the cost of living is lower, and/or drop out of education and the workforce altogether.[20][25] These phenomena are referred to as going Galt[26][27], after John Galt, the iconic protagonist of Ayn Rand's novel Atlas Shrugged[28]. In Japan's herbivore men phenomenon, men going Galt are called freeters or NEETs.[29] One study estimated that 37% of the decline in male employment in America since 1979 could be explained by men's retreat from marriage and fatherhood.[30]

The term MGTOW is often used interchangeably with the so-called marriage strike or marriage boycott, which are not entirely coterminous with MGTOW (which is a broader concept), although there is considerable overlap. The marriage strike is a form of protest against the allegedly unfair legal conditions of marriage. Some marriage strikers hope to return to marriage once these laws have been reformed, while many other MGTOW do not wish to return to marriage or women, or change society, but merely wish to be left alone. Such MGTOW have no demands to present, no terms to bargain about, and no compromise to reach, thus engaging in a marriage boycott.[31]

Journalist Milo Yiannopoulos has also coined and popularized the term sexodus (a portmanteau of sex and exodus) as a synonym for MGTOW.[32][33][34]

MGTOW can refer to both the social phenomenon, in which case a man can be a participant in MGTOW without even knowing about the term "MGTOW", and to the community of men who discuss the MGTOW philosophy and support each other in their MGTOW lifestyle.

What MGTOW are not[edit]

The modern incarnation of MGTOW as a community originated in what is known as the "manosphere" (or "androsphere"), a loose and informal collection of weblogs, web forums, and websites, and online video channels, of men discussing men's issues, many of which are male-only spaces. Many MGTOW prefer to disassociate themselves from the "manosphere", as the latter term is sometimes used as an attempt to conflate several very different ideas:

  • MGTOW are separate and different from the men's rights movement (MRM). Men's rights activists (MRAs) seek to influence or reform society though public protests, conferences, public speaking, publications, lobbying, picketing, petitions, and other organized political and legal activism, whereas MGTOW are not a political movement, and hence MGTOW as such are either unconcerned with influencing larger society, or engage in (private and personal) passive resistance and nonparticipation as a form of protest.
  • MGTOW also differ from "pick-up artists (PUAs)" and the "seduction community" which encourage men to dedicate time, money, and effort to pursuing sex and relationships, with an emphasis on increasing one's number of sexual partners, and garnering female approval. While many MGTOW still engage in sexual relationships with women, such MGTOW strive to minimize the time, money, effort, and risks involved in such activities, and exercise great selectivity in their choice of romantic partners.
  • MGTOW also should also not be confused with self-described "involuntary celibates" ("incels"). An "incel" is a man who wishes to have intimate relationships, but considers himself too unattractive to attract a woman, and subsequently resents women for purportedly causing his sexual frustration.[35] MGTOW consider 'involuntary celibacy' to be an oxymoron: many MGTOW practice voluntary celibacy, other MGTOW have relationships or partake in casual or transactional sex. An "incel" defines his life by his difficulties in attracting women, essentially analogous to a PUA who defines his life by his abilities to attract women. A MGHOW considers both of these worldviews to be worthless, and by definition does not allow female validation to define him or his worth. Whether or not a MGHOW has sex or not is irrelevant; it is a matter of perspective and perspective alone.
  • Finally, the MGTOW concept is not simply identical with "bachelorhood" in general, one reason being that MGTOW are bachelors who uphold a personal philosophy based on male self-determination, self-preservation, and a opposition to gynocentrism, whereas a bachelor in general may be a bachelor for variety of other reasons (such as a lack of physical attraction to women, as in the case of asexuality or homosexuality).

History of MGTOW[edit]

Monks, celibates, and ascetics have been common throughout history—Siddhartha Gautama had a wife and a son that he abandoned at the age of 30 to investigate the world, and even Paul the Apostle recommended against wives and families because he considered them to be an encumbrance—however, MGTOW are not per se a part of any religious tradition, and do not necessarily abstain from sex. The phenomenon of male self-determination goes back centuries under names such as free-man, celibate, bachelor, stag, and freewheeler. In the Victorian era, the term eligible bachelor was used in the context of upper class matchmaking, denoting a young man who was not only unmarried and eligible for marriage, but also considered "eligible" in financial and social terms for the prospective bride under discussion. In the Victorian era, the term "confirmed bachelor" denoted a man who was resolute to remain unmarried. Sometimes these self-determined or ‘MGTOW’ men formed groups, the earliest known being that of the Anti-Bardell Bachelor Band of 1898[36]. The phrase “men going their own way,” or variants such as “going his own way,” or “to go his own sweet way,” in reference to men’s freedoms is hundreds of years old.[37][38] The "herbivore men" phenomenon was first observed by Maki Fukasawa in an article published on Oct. 13, 2006, and was subsequently discussed in a book by Masahiro Morioka[39].

The modern incarnation of MGTOW as a community has its origins in what is known as the "manosphere" (or "androsphere"), a loose and informal collection of weblogs, web forums, and websites of men discussing men's issues. The MGTOW phrase made its appearance in the early 2000s in several online men's rights groups. Three of those who conceived the MGTOW community went by the names Zed the Zenpriest, Ragnar Jensen, and Meikyo. Zed noted that many types of men's rights movements, to his dismay, would splinter and fracture, because the men in those movements displayed an incredible amount of stubbornness, in-fighting, and stifling political correctness. Zed coined the term "MGTOW", because he noticed one reason why the men's rights movement was not effective was because “men kept going their own way”[40].

Ragnar describes the historical establishment of "men going their own way" as taking place in Hickory, North Carolina, in October 2004, in a meeting between Ragnar and Meikyo; Zed was also invited, but was unable to attend due to illness.[41] They concluded that an individual, grassroots strategy, which Zed had previously dubbed "men going their own way", was superior to the men's rights movement and working for men's rights organisations. In an interview, Ragnar describes the moment as follows:

In a seminal announcement dated December 1, 2004[43], Ragnar declared that MGTOW was based on an essay titled Ignoring Women, written by Zed the Zenpriest, as its foundational document. As Zed stated in this document:


As Ragnar elaborated in his announcement:


Ragnar concluded with what he called a "small essay" of his own, which introduced the MGTOW logo, and which advocated "two strategies that come together in one", namely,

Much of these ideas were subsequently fleshed out and discussed, occasionally with heated arguments; and men adapted and expounded upon MGTOW as a philosophy and a way of being. The present incarnation and definition of the term "MGTOW" has evolved away from and severed its ties with its murky origins in the men's rights movement, such that today the definition of MGTOW is a strictly nonpolitical philosophy centered around independence or separatism from women, and a rejection of traditional gender roles of masculinity and femininity.[46][47]

As described by prominent sources[edit]

The MGTOW phenomenon has been described in detail in books by prominent authors such as Helen Smith[26], Kay Hymowitz[48] Philip Zimbardo[49], and in many mainstream or notable newspapers, websites and other sources, including the Sunday Times[50], Breitbart News Network[32][33][34], Vice Magazine[23], and others.

In an interview, Erin Pizzey, the family care activist internationally famous for having started the first domestic violence shelter in the modern world, described MGTOW and expressed her concern about the effects on women:

Dr. Jeremy Nicholson, M.S.W., Ph.D., for his column "The Attraction Doctor" in Psychology Today, viewed MGTOW sympathetically, calling societal and female expectations on men in relationships a "double bind", which has left many men "wounded" or "frustrated" to the point that have chosen to "opt out" entirely and instead concentrate on making themselves happy in other ways.[51]

In February, 2011, in an article about her published thesis that what she terms "the rise of women" has had a negative influence on men, American author Kay Hymowitz suggested the reader search for terms including "MGTOW (Men Going Their Own Way)" for examples of young men frustrated by women who complain of inequality while demanding preferential treatment.[15]

A detailed account of the MGTOW phenomenon was published by Helen Smith, Ph.D., in her 2013 book "Men On Strike; Why Men are Boycotting Marriage, Fatherhood and the American Dream, and Why It Matters".[26]

The Sunday Times, the largest-selling British national "quality" Sunday newspaper, featured an in-depth 8-page article detailing the MGTOW phenomenon.[10]

Reasons why men go their own way[edit]

Summary[edit]

MGTOW believe that legal and romantic entanglements with women fail a cost–benefit analysis and risk–benefit analysis. MGTOW believe it is advisable for men to shun marriage, cohabitation, and procreation, because they believe that the modern legal climate and justice system is hostile and dangerous towards men, and that the prevailing society or culture is gynocentric and misandrist. Many MGTOW also are of the opinion that even if all such alleged legal dangers, moral hazards, and other problems disappeared, modern women and modern society do not provide any positive incentives for men to engage in interactions with women. Many believe that mechanization and automation have substituted for the need for female labor in many (traditionally female) household tasks. Many self-identified MGTOW also feel that that female companionship does not provide sufficient positive incentives to associate with women, and advise men stay away from romantic relationships, because they see such relationships as inherently dangerous and exploitative, or even in some cases from women in general, whom they see as hypergamous and manipulative by nature.

Consequences of divorce[edit]

Richard Doyle wrote about the court handling of divorces and child custody processes:

Some have claimed that family and divorce law discriminate against men and favored their wives.[53] It has been asserted that men are consciously or unconsciously opting out of marriage and engaging in a "marriage strike" as a result of the lack of benefits in marriage and the emotional and financial consequences of divorce, including alimony and child custody and support.[54][26][55] MGTOW have argued that divorce and custody laws violate men's individual rights to equal protection.

See also: Implications of divorce

Criticism of MGTOW[edit]

MGTOW are sometimes dismissed as "toxic misogynists" or shamed as "a cult for lonely virgins"[56]. MGTOW have also been accused of having Peter Pan Syndrome or commitmentphobia.[57] Critics of MGTOW often state that men need to "man-up" and take on the burdens and responsibilities of having a wife and children.

In an investigative report critical of the men's rights movement, the Southern Poverty Law Center, a group dedicated to battling "hate crimes", painted a negative picture of MGTOW, presenting quotes from MGTOW that included violent metaphors.[58]. It quoted MGTOW as opposing marriage on the grounds that it allows the woman and the state to virtually kidnap a man's children, evict him from his home, steal his money, and enslave him for life on pain of prison. Gwendolyn Leachman writes that this sort of framing "downplays the systemic biases that women face that justify protective divorce and custody laws."[59]

See also[edit]

Look up MGTOW in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

External links[edit]

Notes and references[edit]

  1. ^ "From carnivores to herbivores: how men are defined in Japan". japantoday.com. Feb 16, 2012. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  2. ^ McCurry, Justin (2009-12-27). "Japan's 'grass eaters' turn their backs on macho ways". the Guardian. Retrieved 2015-10-17.
  3. ^ Yang, Jeff (2011-03-23). "After the end of the world". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  4. ^ lifestudies.org Special Report: Herbivore Men
  5. ^ "Blurring the boundaries". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  6. ^ "Young Japanese 'decline to fall in love'". BBC News. 2012-01-11.
  7. ^ "Unmasking Japan, Episode 2 "The Last Days of Pompeii?"". YouTube. Retrieved 2012-08-20. [dead link]
  8. ^ "They need another hero". The Economist. 2009-10-29.
  9. ^ Tomikawa, Yuri (2011-01-13). "No Sex, Please, We're Young Japanese Men". The Wall Street Journal.
  10. ^ a b Martin Daubney. "Meet the men giving up on women". The Sunday Times. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  11. ^ Will Ross. "The Sunday Times Magazine Provides Frank, Humanizing Look at the Men Going Their Own Way". Breitbart News Network.
  12. ^ [1]
  13. ^ Smith, Helen (December 18, 2013). "Meninists, Twitter and 'Going Ghost'". Dr. Helen. PJ Media. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
  14. ^ a b Interview with Erin Pizzey on YouTube
  15. ^ a b Hymowitz, Kay (February 27, 2011). "Why Are Men So Angry?". The Daily Beast. The Daily Beast. Retrieved 6 April 2015. During the last few years researching this age group, I've stumbled onto a powerful underground current of male bitterness that has nothing to do with outsourcing, the Mancession, or any of the other issues we usually associate with contemporary male discontent. No, this is bitterness from guys who find the young women they might have hoped to hang out with entitled, dishonest, self-involved, slutty, manipulative, shallow, controlling—and did I mention gold-digging? Check out the websites [with] names like MGTOW (Men Going Their Own Way), Nomarriage.com, or EternalBachelor [...] ("Give Modern Women the Husband They Deserve. None.")
  16. ^ McCarthy, James. "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. Chemistry student David is part of an online community known as MGTOW – Men Going Their Own Way. According to mgtow.com, it is about "ejecting silly preconceptions and cultural definitions of what a 'man' is". It's about "looking to no-one else for social cues. Refusing to bow, serve and kneel for the opportunity to be treated like a disposable utility." And, it's about "living according to his own best interests in a world which would rather he didn't". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  17. ^ Worley-Lopez, Frank. "MGTOW: Join the Puerto Rico Independence Movement!". PanAm Post. If you've been using social media of late, it's almost impossible that you won't have come across the MGTOW (Men Going Their Own Way) movement. It's a response to decades of feminist legal and social hypocrisy and what is often referred to as "gynocentrism." Within MGTOW and the men's-rights movement are plenty of former husbands and fathers who have been left hopeless and sometimes homeless by family-and-divorce court. So bad is the situation that the term "divorce rape" was created to explain what happens to men when they get divorced. The men's-rights movement has spawned a host of websites and YouTube channels like A Voice for Men, Return of Kings, MGTOW.com, and Sargon of Akkad, a YouTube channel with over 100,000 subscribers. It has also created the likes of JudgyBitch and GirlWritesWhat: women who have become famous for fighting for men's rights.
  18. ^ "About | MGTOW". www.mgtow.com. Retrieved 2015-12-20.
  19. ^ Hollingworth, Barbara (February 12, 2015). "Bachelor Nation: 70% of Men Aged 20-34 Are Not Married". CNSnews. CNS News. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
  20. ^ a b "Japan's "herbivore" men shun corporate life, sex". Reuters. 2009-07-27. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  21. ^ Smith, Helen. "Meninists, Twitter and 'Going Ghost'". Dr. Helen. PJ Media. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
  22. ^ Gareth May (28 Apr 2014). "Break-ups: why do men 'ghost'?". The Telegraph.
  23. ^ a b Mack Lamoureux. "This Group of Straight Men Is Swearing Off Women". Vice Magazine. At first glance, it's easy to lump MGTOW in with typical Men's Rights Activists (MRAs) who also believe that female oppression is a myth and that it's actually males who are oppressed—but that's not the case. The two groups differ significantly in how they make sure those tricky, tricky women don't pull any of their devious tactics. While MRAs are out to fix the problem through action and activism, members of MGTOW hold self-preservation above all else, and because of this the majority of the community seems to have decided to bow out. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  24. ^ Teo, Alan. "Modern-Day Hermits: The Story Hikkomori in Japan and Beyond". Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  25. ^ Harney, Alexandra. "Japan panics about the rise of "herbivores"—young men who shun sex, don't spend money, and like taking walks. - Slate Magazine". Slate.com. Retrieved 2012-08-20.
  26. ^ a b c d Smith, Helen (June 4, 2013). Men On Strike; Why Men are Boycotting Marriage, Fatherhood and the American Dream, and Why It Matters. Encounter Books. ISBN 978-1594037627. American society has become anti-male. Men are sensing the backlash and are consciously and unconsciously going "on strike." They are dropping out of college, leaving the workforce and avoiding marriage and fatherhood at alarming rates. The trend is so pronounced that a number of books have been written about this "man-child" phenomenon, concluding that men have taken a vacation from responsibility simply because they can. But why should men participate in a system that seems to be increasingly stacked against them? As Men on Strike demonstrates, men aren't dropping out because they are stuck in arrested development. They are instead acting rationally in response to the lack of incentives society offers them to be responsible fathers, husbands and providers. In addition, men are going on strike, either consciously or unconsciously, because they do not want to be injured by the myriad of laws, attitudes and hostility against them for the crime of happening to be male in the twenty-first century. Men are starting to fight back against the backlash. Men on Strike explains their battle cry.
  27. ^ Smith, Helen. "How should Men "Go Galt" in a female-centered society?". PJ Media. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  28. ^ The book was originally titled "The Strike" by Rand, but the title was changed on the suggestion of her husband.
  29. ^ "Youth Employment in Japan's Economic Recovery: 'Freeters' and 'NEETs'". JapanFocus. Retrieved 2012-08-20.
  30. ^ W.B.Wilcox, R.I.Lerman, For richer, for poorer: how family structures economic success in America.
  31. ^ Smith, Helen. "Are Men on Strike or have they Quit?". PJ Media.
  32. ^ a b Yiannopoulos, Milo. "The Sexodus, Part 1: The Men Giving Up On Women And Checking Out Of Society". Breitbart News Network. Social commentators, journalists, academics, scientists and young men themselves have all spotted the trend: among men of about 15 to 30 years old, ever-increasing numbers are checking out of society altogether, giving up on women, sex and relationships and retreating into pornography, sexual fetishes, chemical addictions, video games and, in some cases, boorish lad culture, all of which insulate them from a hostile, debilitating social environment created, some argue, by the modern feminist movement.
  33. ^ a b Milo Yiannopoulos. "The Sexodus, Part 2: Dishonest Feminist Panics Leave Male Sexuality In Crisis". Breitbart News Network. We can be quite sure now that the sexodus is not some fringe, isolated internet movement as "Men Going Their Own Way" has sometimes been characterised. A combination of disastrous social engineering, special privileges for women, the relentless mockery of white men on the basis of their sex and skin colour and the economic and educational abandonment for boys has created one, if not two, lost generations already.
  34. ^ a b Will Ross. "The Sunday Times Magazine Provides Frank, Humanizing Look at the Men Going Their Own Way". Breitbart News Network. Though often conflated with MRAs, the Manosphere, or "The Red Pill" communities, MGTOWs are a distinct culture focused less on fighting women or feminists than on living separately, due to what they believe to be a rational assessment of the modern risks of male-female relationships. There is very little malice or combativeness to them. They don't want to fight. They just, as they say, want to go their own way..
  35. ^ Dewey, Caitlin (2014-05-27). "Inside the 'manosphere' that inspired Santa Barbara shooter Elliot Rodger". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
  36. ^ Wright, Peter. MGTOW movement of 1898. Gynocentrism and its Cultural Origins. [2]
  37. ^ Wright, Peter. Early References to Men Going Their Own Way. Gynocentrism and its Cultural Origins. [3]
  38. ^ "Early History of MGTOW". The Unknown History of Misandry. Retrieved 2015-11-30.
  39. ^ 『最後の恋は草食系男子が持ってくる』 (Translated: Herbivore Men Bring the Final Love) Masahiro Morioka. July 23, 2009
  40. ^ Some of the early MGTOW discussions remain preserved at [4]. A summary of these discussions can be found at [5]
  41. ^ Fedders, Rob. The History of MGTOW. NO-MA'AM. [6] (archived at [7])
  42. ^ Dialogue with MGTOW Founders on YouTube
  43. ^ a b c [8] (archived at [9]), with minor errata corrected
  44. ^ Zed the Zenpriest. "Book of Zed: The Collected Works of Wisdom" (PDF).
  45. ^ Zed the Zenpriest, Ignoring Women. NO-MA'AM. [10] (archived at [11])
  46. ^ Debate between Barbarossa and Luigi Logan. [12]
  47. ^ [13]
  48. ^ Hymowitz, Kay (March 6, 2012). Manning Up: How the Rise of Women Has Turned Men into Boys. Basic Books. ISBN 978-0465028368. Women complain there are no good men left—that men are immature, unreliable, and adrift. No wonder. Masculine role models have become increasingly juvenile and inarticulate: think of stars like Adam Sandler and Will Ferrell, or the dudes of the popular Judd Apatow movies. There are no rules for dating and mating. Guys are unsure how to treat a woman. Most importantly, dating in the pre-adult years is no longer a means to an end—marriage—as it was in the past. Many young men today suspect they are no longer essential to family life, and without the old scripts to follow, they find themselves stuck between adolescence and "real" adulthood. In Manning Up, Kay Hymowitz sets these problems in a socioeconomic context: today's knowledge economy is female friendly, and many of the highest profile areas of that economy—communications, design, the arts, and health care—are dominated by women. Men are increasingly left on the outskirts of this new, service economy, and take much longer to find a financial foothold. With no biological clock telling them it's time to grow up, without the financial resources to settle down, and with the accepted age of marriage rising into the late 30s or even 40s, men are holding onto adolescence at the very time that women are achieving professional success and looking to find a mate to share it with. A provocative account of the modern sexual economy, Hymowitz deftly charts a gender mismatch that threatens the future of the American family and makes no one happy in the long run.
  49. ^ Philip Zimbardo (2012). The Demise of Guys: Why Boys Are Struggling and What We Can Do About It. celebrated psychologist Philip G. Zimbardo and Nikita Duncan say that an addiction to video games and online porn have created a generation of shy, socially awkward, emotionally removed, and risk-adverse young men who are unable (and unwilling) to navigate the complexities and risks inherent to real-life relationships, school, and employment. ... The book is based on a popular TED Talk which Zimbardo did in 2011, and includes extensive research as well as a TED-exclusive survey that drew responses from more than 20,000 men.
  50. ^ Martin Daubney. "Meet the men giving up on women". The Sunday Times. These young men don't want girlfriends; they don't want children; and they don't even want to have sex. The secretive "MGTOW" movement is a fast-growing online community of disillusioned males. But are they misogynists or simply misunderstood? In interviews, Martin Daubney tracks some of them down. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  51. ^ Nicholson, M.S.W., Ph.D., Dr. Jeremy (April 3, 2012). "Why Are Men Frustrated With Dating? Is dating a punishing situation for men?". Psychology Today. The Attraction Doctor. Sussex Publishers, LLC. Retrieved April 6, 2015. finally, some men choose opting out as the best option for them. This is sometimes known as the "men going their own way" (MGTOW) movement. Essentially, these are the guys who have been frustrated and punished to the point that they see no further incentive to relate. Rather than spending their efforts on material success to attract a partner, they focus on making themselves happy. Although these guys are often socially-shamed as "not growing up", in fact, they are arguably just reacting to the lack of outside motivation...and taking care of themselves.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  52. ^ Messner 1997, p. 41–48.
  53. ^ Ashe 2007, p. 57.
  54. ^ Glenn Sacks; Dianna Thompson (2002-07-05). "Have Anti-Father Family Court Policies Led to a Men's Marriage Strike?". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2013-07-15.
  55. ^ Wendy McElroy (2003-08-12). "The Marriage Strike". Fox News – Opinion. Retrieved 2013-07-15.
  56. ^ Daubney, Martin. "George Lawlor's story shows how universities have become hostile towards men". Daily Telegraph. For the past two months, I've immersed myself in the highly-secretive (and oft-maligned) world of the MGTOWs – the Men Going Their Own Way. To my sadness, if not surprise, I discovered a rapidly-growing, global army of men who have concluded that sex, relationships, marriage and fathering children in the modern world is simply "too risky". The MGTOWs feel the "gynocentric" system is stacked against men, so they're quietly opting out, preferring instead to retreat into their man caves to indulge in video games, porn, self-improvement through study or the gym. They're finding the comfort of male-only friends, usually online (but not for sex). Despite the fact they are usually sexual pacifists who have figured "the only way to win the game is to not play", for their viewpoints these men are variously dismissed as "toxic misogynists" or ridiculed as "a cult for lonely virgins". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  57. ^ Hymowitz, Kay S. (2008). "Child-Man in the Promised Land". www.city-journal.org. City Journal. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  58. ^ Goldwag, Arthur (Spring 2012). "Leader's Suicide Brings Attention to Men's Rights Movement". Intelligence Report (145). Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved 6 April 2015. Other movement adherents have forsworn sex altogether, or at least romantic relationships and marriage; the acronym they use for themselves is MGTOW, for "Men Going Their Own Way." "If you are willing to marry a woman — any woman — in the West then you must also be willing to become the next murder-suicide story when she threatens to file for divorce, steal your kids out of your life and extort you for every current and future dollar you will ever earn," wrote one commenter at The Spearhead. "If a man kidnapped your children, stole your home, your wallet and your bank account, you'd be more than willing to kill him in self defense. Why is it any different when ex-wives do it with the full force of the law behind them?"
  59. ^ Leachman, G (2013). "Legal Framing". Studies in Law, Politics, and Society. Studies in Law, Politics and Society. Vol. 61. pp. 25–59. doi:10.1108/S1059-4337(2013)0000061005. ISBN 9781781906200. Retrieved November 1, 2013.



The original and most commonly-used logo for MGTOW is based on a familiar road sign, and also alludes to the symbol for masculinity.

Men Going Their Own Way (abbreviated MGTOW, pronounced /ˈmɪg.taʊ/), sometimes also called the marriage strike, the marriage boycott, or the sexodus, is a worldwide social phenomenon and community of heterosexual men who uphold a personal philosophy which rejects gynocentrism in favor of a value system of male self-determination and self-preservation, and who consequently choose a lifestyle which avoids legal and romantic entanglements with women, including, at the very least, marriage, cohabitation, and procreation. A participant in MGTOW is called a Man Going His Own Way (abbreviated MGHOW, pronounced /ˈmɪg.haʊ/). The phenomenon is considered to be particularly prevalent in Canada, Australia, America, Britain, Germany, and Japan.[1][2] In Japan, MGTOW are known as herbivore men[3] or grass-eater men[4].

As Sunday Times journalist Martin Daubney has pointed out[5], according to Google Trends, interest in "MGTOW" has grown exponentially since 2009; doubling approximately every 12 months,[6] it has rapidly overtaken both "women's rights" and "men's rights", as well as "radical feminism" in search popularity[7]. It has been estimated that the MGTOW arm of the so-called "manosphere" is not only its largest segment, but also its fastest growing.[8] Renowned family care activist Erin Pizzey has described MGTOW as "very powerful" and "almost epidemic".[2]

Definition[edit]

Because it is a decentralised social phenomenon and a community, MGTOW does not have any leaders, spokesmen, by-laws, official publications, official manifesto, or organizational structure, which can make the concept contentious, ambiguous, and difficult to define. The concept of MGTOW is thus primarily defined and refined by the MGTOW community itself, by means of articles, conversations, and debates in self-published books, websites, blogs, web forums, and online videos. Authors that have researched the phenomenon, such as Kay Hymowitz, have recommended examining MGTOW websites, including MGTOW.com and EternalBachelor, for readers interested in this matter.[9][10][11]

According to MGTOW.com, MGTOW are men who share a specific view, philosophy, or school of thought with regard to modern society, romantic relationships, and women in general. According to this website, while the specific wording may differ among individuals, generally accepted definitions within the MGTOW community include:[12]

  • A man who preserves and protects his self-ownership and personal sovereignty.
  • A man who avoids cultural definitions and preconceptions of what a "man" is.
  • A man who looks to no one for social approval.
  • A man who does not allow anyone to treat him as a disposable utility.
  • A man who lives according to his own best interests, rather than society's expectations.

Basic concepts[edit]

One essential principle of the MGTOW lifestyle is the avoidance of legal entanglements with women, including, at the very least, marriage, cohabitation, and procreation. The percentage of unmarried males in America (and many other countries worldwide) has steadily increased since the early 1970s, such that, as of 2015, 70% of American males between 20 and 34 years old are not married; according to Janice Shaw Crouse, author of the book "Marriage Matters", this may have ominous consequences for the future.[13]

The term MGTOW is often used interchangeably with the so-called marriage strike or marriage boycott[14], which are not entirely coterminous with MGTOW (which is a broader concept), although there is considerable overlap. The marriage strike is a form of protest against the allegedly unfair legal conditions of marriage and fatherhood. Some marriage strikers hope to return to marriage and fatherhood once these laws have been reformed, while many other MGTOW do not wish to return to marriage, or change society, but merely wish to be left alone. Such MGTOW have no demands to present, no terms to bargain about, and no compromise to reach, thus engaging in a marriage boycott.[15]

In addition, many MGTOW to varying degrees choose to abandon romantic relationships, casual sexual relationships, female friendships, and/or social contact with women altogether.[16] These phenomena are known as going ghost[17][18] (or, less commonly, as going monk[19]). In Japan's herbivore men phenomenon, an extreme form of men going ghost is known as hikikomori.[20]

Being free from the necessity of supporting a wife and family, many MGTOW to varying degrees choose to reject the traditionally male gender role of breadwinner, refrain from dangerous or stressful careers, minimize the duration of their workweek, reduce their tax burden, lead a frugal and minimalistic lifestyle, opt for entrepreneurship or freelancing instead of permanent employment, while some even sever their dependence on the grid, expatriate to countries where the cost of living is lower, and/or drop out of education and the workforce altogether.[16][21] These phenomena are referred to as going Galt,[22][23] after John Galt, the iconic protagonist of Ayn Rand's novel Atlas Shrugged.[24] In Japan's herbivore men phenomenon, men going Galt are called freeters or NEETs.[25] One study estimated that 37% of the decline in male employment in America since 1979 could be explained by men's retreat from marriage and fatherhood.[26]

Journalist Milo Yiannopoulos has also coined and popularized the term sexodus (a portmanteau of sex and exodus) as a synonym for MGTOW.[27]

MGTOW can refer to both the social phenomenon, in which case a man can be a participant in MGTOW without even knowing about the term "MGTOW"[28], and to the community of men who discuss the MGTOW philosophy and support each other in their MGTOW lifestyle.

What MGTOW are not[edit]

The modern incarnation of MGTOW as a community originated in what is known as the "manosphere" (or "androsphere"), a loose and informal collection of weblogs, web forums, and websites, and online video channels, of men discussing men's issues, many of which are male-only spaces. Many MGTOW prefer to disassociate themselves from the "manosphere", as the latter term is sometimes used as an attempt to conflate several very different ideas:[27]

  • MGTOW are separate and different from the men's rights movement (MRM).[27] Men's rights activists (MRAs) seek to influence or reform society though public protests, conferences, public speaking, publications, lobbying, picketing, petitions, and other organized political and legal activism, whereas MGTOW are not a political movement[29], and hence MGTOW as such are either unconcerned with influencing larger society, or engage in (private and personal) passive resistance and nonparticipation as a form of protest.
  • While MGTOW are highly critical of feminism, the MGTOW philosophy is not restricted to or synonymous with antifeminism. Indeed, many MGTOW view both progressive feminism and traditional conservative antifeminism as two sides of a single gynocentric spectrum. Traditional conservatives antifeminists defend several gynocentric notions such as chivalry, traditional gender roles of breadwinner and housewife, and traditional "family values", such as an insistence on monogamy, marriage, and procreation. Traditional conservative antifeminists have therefore criticized MGTOW for walking away from these ideals[30][31]; MGTOW have in their turn criticized traditional conservative antifeminists for what they see as taking advantage of the benefits feminism provided for women while remaining passive and silent about feminism's negative consequences for men.[32]
  • MGTOW also differ from "pick-up artists (PUAs)" and the "seduction community"[33] which encourage men to dedicate time, money, and effort to pursuing sex and relationships, with an emphasis on increasing one's number of sexual partners, and garnering female approval. While many MGTOW still engage in sexual relationships with women, such MGTOW strive to minimize the time, money, effort, and risks involved in such activities, and exercise great selectivity in their choice of romantic partners.
  • MGTOW also should also not be confused with self-described "involuntary celibates" ("incels"). An "incel" is a man who wishes to have intimate relationships, but considers himself too unattractive to attract a woman, and subsequently resents women for purportedly causing his sexual frustration.[34] From the perspective of the MGTOW philosophy, "involuntary celibacy" is an oxymoron, because MGTOW practice voluntary celibacy or have relationships or partake in casual or transactional sex.[35]
  • Finally, the MGTOW concept is not simply identical with "bachelorhood" in general, one reason being that MGTOW are bachelors who uphold a personal philosophy based on male self-determination, self-preservation, and an opposition to gynocentrism, whereas there exist a variety of reasons why a bachelor in general might be a bachelor (such as a lack of physical attraction to women, as in the case of asexuality or homosexuality).

History of MGTOW[edit]

Monks, celibates, and ascetics have been common throughout history—Siddhartha Gautama had a wife and a son that he abandoned at the age of 30 to investigate the world, and even Paul the Apostle recommended against wives and families because he considered them to be an encumbrance—however, MGTOW are not per se a part of any religious tradition, and do not necessarily abstain from sex. The phenomenon of male self-determination goes back centuries under names such as free-man, celibate, bachelor, stag, and freewheeler. In the Victorian era, the term eligible bachelor was used in the context of upper class matchmaking, denoting a young man who was not only unmarried and eligible for marriage, but also considered "eligible" in financial and social terms for the prospective bride under discussion. In the Victorian era, the term "confirmed bachelor" denoted a man who was resolute to remain unmarried. Sometimes these self-determined or ‘MGTOW’ men formed groups, the earliest known being that of the Anti-Bardell Bachelor Band of 1898.[36] The phrase "men going their own way," or variants such as "going his own way," or "to go his own sweet way," in reference to men’s freedoms is hundreds of years old.[37][38] The "herbivore men" phenomenon was first observed by Maki Fukasawa in an article published on Oct. 13, 2006, and was subsequently discussed in a book by Masahiro Morioka.[39]

The modern incarnation of MGTOW as a community has its origins in what is known as the "manosphere" (or "androsphere"), a loose and informal collection of weblogs, web forums, and websites of men discussing men's issues. The MGTOW phrase made its appearance in 2004 in several online men's rights groups.[40] Three of those who conceived the MGTOW community went by the names Zed the Zenpriest, Ragnar Jensen, and Meikyo. Zed noted that many types of men's rights movements, to his dismay, would splinter and fracture, because the men in those movements displayed an incredible amount of stubbornness, in-fighting, and stifling political correctness. Zed coined the term "MGTOW", because he noticed one reason why the men's rights movement was not effective was because men kept going their own way.[41]

Ragnar describes the historical establishment of "men going their own way" as taking place in Hickory, North Carolina, in October 2004, in a meeting between Ragnar and Meikyo; Zed was also invited, but was unable to attend due to illness.[42] They concluded that an individual, grassroots strategy, which Zed had previously dubbed "men going their own way", was superior to the men's rights movement and working for men's rights organisations. In an interview, Ragnar described this particular moment. He lamented that he and other men were frustrated that they could not get men to build a proper men's rights organisation, could not get men to come to meetings, and so on, because "everyone was going their own damned way". He explained that because of the fact that every man went their own way, they started using that phrase, and started to reconsider their priorities, and started thinking about who defines a man's masculinity. He stated that men have have to find out what masculinity is for themselves: according to him, because men have the responsibility for their own actions, it is also their responsibility to define who they are as a man.[43]

In a seminal announcement dated December 1, 2004,[44] Ragnar introduced the phrase "Men Going Their Own Way" to the public, and declared that the concept was based on an essay titled Ignoring Women, written by Zed, as its foundational document. As this document stated:

Men now must completely destroy marriage. It is too corrupt and too fouled to fix. It is a derelict building which must be torn down so that something useful can be built in its place.

We cannot stop the marriage strike. The real "men's movement" is millions of wildcat strikes of one man who has woken up to what bullshit "marriage" as it exists today really is.

No matter how big a dam one builds, a river will always overcome it. We cannot either push, or hold back, the river. It will proceed at its own pace.

We can, however, clear out the snags which naturally hold it back and let natural forces speed up the current.

Women have turned their backs on us when we needed them, now we must turn our backs on them when they need us.[45]

As Ragnar explained in his announcement, conversations with several other men based on this document had lead to an idea called "Men Going Their Own Way". He stated that a main thrust of this idea was to instill masculinity in men, by which he meant teaching men that they are not obligated to cater to women's wants and needs, unless there is a "quid pro quo" situation. He also stated that the idea of MGTOW was supposed to encourage men to live their lives without cohabiting with or interacting with women: he noted, for example, that men enjoy spending time without women in bands and brotherhoods, and he encouraged men to start "men's clubs" for their personal enjoyment. He also stated that one core idea of "men going their own way" was to teach men that they should not cohabit with women, and that they can have a fulfilling live without even interacting with women. He explained, however, that a MGTOW lifestyle does not require abstaining from sex—but that it may, on the contrary, involve as little or as much sex as desired, according to each individual MGHOW's personal preferences. Ragnar concluded with what he called a "small essay" of his own, which introduced the MGTOW logo, and which advocated "two strategies that come together in one", namely,

The present incarnation and definition of the term "MGTOW" has evolved away from and severed its ties with its murky origins in the men's rights movement, as much of these ideas were subsequently fleshed out and discussed, occasionally with heated arguments; and men adapted and expounded upon MGTOW as a philosophy and a way of being.[41]

As described by prominent sources[edit]

The MGTOW phenomenon has been described in detail in books by prominent authors such as Helen Smith,[22] Kay Hymowitz[46] Philip Zimbardo,[47] and in many mainstream or notable newspapers, websites and other sources, including the Sunday Times,[48] Breitbart News Network,[49][50][27] Vice Magazine,[19] and others.

In an interview, Erin Pizzey, the family care activist internationally famous for having started the first domestic violence shelter in the modern world, described MGTOW and expressed her concern about the effects on women:

Dr. Jeremy Nicholson, M.S.W., Ph.D., for his column "The Attraction Doctor" in Psychology Today, viewed MGTOW sympathetically, calling societal and female expectations on men in relationships a "double bind", which has left many men "wounded" or "frustrated" to the point that have chosen to "opt out" entirely and instead concentrate on making themselves happy in other ways.[51]

In February, 2011, in an article about her published thesis that what she terms "the rise of women" has had a negative influence on men, American author Kay Hymowitz suggested the reader search for terms including "MGTOW (Men Going Their Own Way)" for examples of young men frustrated by women who complain of inequality while demanding preferential treatment.[9]

A detailed account of the MGTOW phenomenon was published by Helen Smith, Ph.D., in her 2013 book "Men On Strike; Why Men are Boycotting Marriage, Fatherhood and the American Dream, and Why It Matters".[22]

The Sunday Times, the largest-selling British national "quality" Sunday newspaper, featured an in-depth 8-page article detailing the MGTOW phenomenon.[48]

Reasons why men go their own way[edit]

Summary[edit]

MGTOW believe that legal and romantic entanglements with women fail a cost–benefit analysis and risk–benefit analysis.[52][53] MGTOW believe it is beneficial for them to shun marriage, cohabitation, and procreation, because they believe that the modern legal climate and justice system is hostile and dangerous towards men, and that the prevailing society or culture is gynocentric[54] and misandrist.[55] Many MGTOW also are of the opinion that even if all such alleged legal dangers, moral hazards, and other problems disappeared, modern women and modern society do not provide any positive incentives for men to engage in interactions with women. Many believe that mechanization and automation have substituted for the need for female labor in many (traditionally female) household tasks. Many self-identified MGTOW also feel that that female companionship does not provide sufficient positive incentives to associate with women, and advise men stay away from romantic relationships, because they see such relationships as inherently dangerous and exploitative, or even in some cases from women in general, whom they see as hypergamous and manipulative by nature[56].

Consequences of divorce[edit]

Richard Doyle wrote about the court handling of divorces and child custody processes:

Some have claimed that family and divorce law discriminate against men and favored their wives.[58] It has been asserted that men are consciously or unconsciously opting out of marriage and engaging in a "marriage strike" as a result of the lack of benefits in marriage and the emotional and financial consequences of divorce, including alimony and child custody and support.[22][59][60] MGTOW have argued that divorce and custody laws violate men's individual rights to equal protection.

See also: Implications of divorce

Criticism of MGTOW[edit]

MGTOW are sometimes dismissed as "toxic misogynists" or shamed as "a cult for lonely virgins".[61] MGTOW have also been accused of having Peter Pan Syndrome or commitmentphobia.[62]

In an investigative report critical of the men's rights movement, the Southern Poverty Law Center, a group dedicated to battling "hate crimes", painted a negative picture of MGTOW, presenting quotes from MGTOW that included violent metaphors.[63] It quoted MGTOW as opposing marriage on the grounds that it supposedly allows the woman and the state to virtually kidnap a man's children, evict him from his home, steal his money, and enslave him for life on pain of prison. Gwendolyn Leachman writes that this sort of framing "downplays the systemic biases that women face that justify protective divorce and custody laws."[64]

See also[edit]

External links[edit]

Look up MGTOW in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Notes and references[edit]

  1. ^ Daubney (2015). "MGTOW’s popularity exploded, particularly in Canada, Australia, America, Britain and Germany."
  2. ^ a b c Interview with Erin Pizzey on YouTube
  3. ^ "From carnivores to herbivores: how men are defined in Japan". japantoday.com. Feb 16, 2012. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
  4. ^ McCurry, Justin (2009-12-27). "Japan's 'grass eaters' turn their backs on macho ways". the Guardian. Retrieved 2015-10-17.
  5. ^ Will Ross. "The Sunday Times Magazine Provides Frank, Humanizing Look at the Men Going Their Own Way". Breitbart News Network.
  6. ^ Google Trends report on MGTOW
  7. ^ Google Trends report on MGTOW, women's rights, men's rights, and radical feminism
  8. ^ Smith, Helen (December 18, 2013). "Meninists, Twitter and 'Going Ghost'". Dr. Helen. PJ Media. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
  9. ^ a b Hymowitz, Kay (February 27, 2011). "Why Are Men So Angry?". The Daily Beast. The Daily Beast. Retrieved 6 April 2015. During the last few years researching this age group, I've stumbled onto a powerful underground current of male bitterness that has nothing to do with outsourcing, the Mancession, or any of the other issues we usually associate with contemporary male discontent. No, this is bitterness from guys who find the young women they might have hoped to hang out with entitled, dishonest, self-involved, slutty, manipulative, shallow, controlling—and did I mention gold-digging? Check out the websites [with] names like MGTOW (Men Going Their Own Way), Nomarriage.com, or EternalBachelor [...] ("Give Modern Women the Husband They Deserve. None.")
  10. ^ McCarthy, James. "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. Chemistry student David is part of an online community known as MGTOW – Men Going Their Own Way. According to mgtow.com, it is about "ejecting silly preconceptions and cultural definitions of what a 'man' is". It's about "looking to no-one else for social cues. Refusing to bow, serve and kneel for the opportunity to be treated like a disposable utility." And, it's about "living according to his own best interests in a world which would rather he didn't". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  11. ^ Worley-Lopez, Frank. "MGTOW: Join the Puerto Rico Independence Movement!". PanAm Post. If you've been using social media of late, it's almost impossible that you won't have come across the MGTOW (Men Going Their Own Way) movement. It's a response to decades of feminist legal and social hypocrisy and what is often referred to as "gynocentrism." Within MGTOW and the men's-rights movement are plenty of former husbands and fathers who have been left hopeless and sometimes homeless by family-and-divorce court. So bad is the situation that the term "divorce rape" was created to explain what happens to men when they get divorced. The men's-rights movement has spawned a host of websites and YouTube channels like A Voice for Men, Return of Kings, MGTOW.com, and Sargon of Akkad, a YouTube channel with over 100,000 subscribers. It has also created the likes of JudgyBitch and GirlWritesWhat: women who have become famous for fighting for men's rights.
  12. ^ "About | MGTOW". www.mgtow.com. Retrieved 2015-12-20.
  13. ^ Hollingworth, Barbara (February 12, 2015). "Bachelor Nation: 70% of Men Aged 20-34 Are Not Married". CNSnews. CNS News. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
  14. ^ Baskerville, Stephen (2007-09-25). Taken Into Custody: The War Against Fathers, Marriage, and the Family. Nashville, Tenn.: Cumberland House Publishing. ISBN 9781581825947. "There is mounting evidence that as men discover the terms of marriage and divorce today, they are engaging in a marriage boycott or marriage "strike": refusing to marry or start families, knowing they can be criminalized if their wife walks out and how attractive the divorce industry has made it easy for her to do so. .... Sonja Hastings of Fathers-4-Equality says that "no matter how decent, hardworking, and caring you may be as a father, that in the event of separation, you will more than likely not get custody of your child, you will lose up to 80% of all of your assets, you will have to pay up to five times the cost of raising a child, and most importantly you could never see your child again." In Britain a fathers' rights group tours university campuses warning young men not to start families. Even one attorney writes a book concluding that the only effective protection for men to avoid losing their children is not to start a family in the first place." (p. 210)
  15. ^ Smith, Helen. "Are Men on Strike or have they Quit?". PJ Media.
  16. ^ a b "Japan's "herbivore" men shun corporate life, sex". Reuters. 2009-07-27. Retrieved 2012-01-15.
  17. ^ Smith, Helen. "Meninists, Twitter and 'Going Ghost'". Dr. Helen. PJ Media. Retrieved 2015-11-28.
  18. ^ Gareth May (28 Apr 2014). "Break-ups: why do men 'ghost'?". The Telegraph.
  19. ^ a b Mack Lamoureux. "This Group of Straight Men Is Swearing Off Women". Vice Magazine. At first glance, it's easy to lump MGTOW in with typical Men's Rights Activists (MRAs) who also believe that female oppression is a myth and that it's actually males who are oppressed—but that's not the case. The two groups differ significantly in how they make sure those tricky, tricky women don't pull any of their devious tactics. While MRAs are out to fix the problem through action and activism, members of MGTOW hold self-preservation above all else, and because of this the majority of the community seems to have decided to bow out. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  20. ^ Teo, Alan. "Modern-Day Hermits: The Story Hikkomori in Japan and Beyond". Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  21. ^ Harney, Alexandra. "Japan panics about the rise of "herbivores"—young men who shun sex, don't spend money, and like taking walks. - Slate Magazine". Slate.com. Retrieved 2012-08-20.
  22. ^ a b c d Smith, Helen (June 4, 2013). Men On Strike; Why Men are Boycotting Marriage, Fatherhood and the American Dream, and Why It Matters. Encounter Books. ISBN 978-1594037627. American society has become anti-male. Men are sensing the backlash and are consciously and unconsciously going "on strike." They are dropping out of college, leaving the workforce and avoiding marriage and fatherhood at alarming rates. The trend is so pronounced that a number of books have been written about this "man-child" phenomenon, concluding that men have taken a vacation from responsibility simply because they can. But why should men participate in a system that seems to be increasingly stacked against them? As Men on Strike demonstrates, men aren't dropping out because they are stuck in arrested development. They are instead acting rationally in response to the lack of incentives society offers them to be responsible fathers, husbands and providers. In addition, men are going on strike, either consciously or unconsciously, because they do not want to be injured by the myriad of laws, attitudes and hostility against them for the crime of happening to be male in the twenty-first century. Men are starting to fight back against the backlash. Men on Strike explains their battle cry.
  23. ^ Smith, Helen. "How should Men "Go Galt" in a female-centered society?". PJ Media. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  24. ^ The book was originally titled "The Strike" by Rand, but the title was changed on the suggestion of her husband.
  25. ^ "Youth Employment in Japan's Economic Recovery: 'Freeters' and 'NEETs'". JapanFocus. Retrieved 2012-08-20.
  26. ^ W.B.Wilcox, R.I.Lerman, For richer, for poorer: how family structures economic success in America.
  27. ^ a b c d Will Ross. "The Sunday Times Magazine Provides Frank, Humanizing Look at the Men Going Their Own Way". Breitbart News Network. Though often conflated with MRAs, the Manosphere, or "The Red Pill" communities, MGTOWs are a distinct culture focused less on fighting women or feminists than on living separately, due to what they believe to be a rational assessment of the modern risks of male-female relationships. There is very little malice or combativeness to them. They don't want to fight. They just, as they say, want to go their own way.
  28. ^ Daubney (2015), "Sandman is a 36-year-old photographer based in Toronto, Canada, and has more than 40,000 YouTube subscribers. "MGTOW is already massive and has tens of millions if not hundreds of millions of men around the world," he claims. "They just don’t know they are going their own way, and that the term or online community exists." ... what amazed me most while researching this article was that every time I explained the MGTOW concept to a friend, they all knew one — they just didn’t know they were called MGTOWs."
  29. ^ Lamoureux (2015) ""Gay rights is a movement, feminism is a movement, men's rights activism is a movement," Oz, a founder of MGTOW.com, explained to VICE [...] "Those things thrive and their success depends on collecting an army of people and them all agreeing on a common goal, and they have parades or whatever it is to unite. [MGTOW] is nothing like this"
  30. ^ Perrins, Laura (December 12, 2014). "They call it the 'sexodus'. Men retreat from women". The Conservative Woman. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
  31. ^ Brown, Belinda (May 1, 2015). "A century of feminism has failed us. Women have betrayed men's trust". The Conservative Woman. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
  32. ^ Gyngell, Kathy (April 21, 2015). "Sexodus anger needs to be channelled before it explodes". The Conservative Woman. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
  33. ^ Daubney (2015). "Though often conflated with MRAs, the Manosphere, or "The Red Pill" communities, MGTOWs are a distinct culture" (Here "The Red Pill" refers to the branch of the seduction community which is active on Reddit under that metonym.)
  34. ^ Dewey, Caitlin (2014-05-27). "Inside the 'manosphere' that inspired Santa Barbara shooter Elliot Rodger". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
  35. ^ Lamoureux (2015). "Some [MGTOW] try to remedy this by attempting one night stands, others rely solely on masturbation, and some routinely visit sex workers."
  36. ^ Wright, Peter. MGTOW movement of 1898. Gynocentrism and its Cultural Origins. [14]
  37. ^ Wright, Peter. Early References to Men Going Their Own Way. Gynocentrism and its Cultural Origins. [15]
  38. ^ "Early History of MGTOW". The Unknown History of Misandry. Retrieved 2015-11-30.
  39. ^ 『最後の恋は草食系男子が持ってくる』 (Translated: Herbivore Men Bring the Final Love) Masahiro Morioka. July 23, 2009
  40. ^ Daubney (2015) "Although many people [...] may not have heard of MGTOW yet, it isn’t a new concept. According to [..] one of the internet’s biggest men’s rights forums, the first documented use of the term was in 2004."
  41. ^ a b Some of these early MGTOW discussions remain preserved at [16].
  42. ^ Fedders, Rob. The History of MGTOW. NO-MA'AM. [17] (archived at [18])
  43. ^ Dialogue with MGTOW Founders on YouTube
  44. ^ a b [19] (archived at [20]), with minor errata corrected
  45. ^ Zed the Zenpriest. "Book of Zed: The Collected Works of Wisdom" (PDF).. (p. 587)
  46. ^ Hymowitz, Kay (March 6, 2012). Manning Up: How the Rise of Women Has Turned Men into Boys. Basic Books. ISBN 978-0465028368. Women complain there are no good men left—that men are immature, unreliable, and adrift. No wonder. Masculine role models have become increasingly juvenile and inarticulate: think of stars like Adam Sandler and Will Ferrell, or the dudes of the popular Judd Apatow movies. There are no rules for dating and mating. Guys are unsure how to treat a woman. Most importantly, dating in the pre-adult years is no longer a means to an end—marriage—as it was in the past. Many young men today suspect they are no longer essential to family life, and without the old scripts to follow, they find themselves stuck between adolescence and "real" adulthood. In Manning Up, Kay Hymowitz sets these problems in a socioeconomic context: today's knowledge economy is female friendly, and many of the highest profile areas of that economy—communications, design, the arts, and health care—are dominated by women. Men are increasingly left on the outskirts of this new, service economy, and take much longer to find a financial foothold. With no biological clock telling them it's time to grow up, without the financial resources to settle down, and with the accepted age of marriage rising into the late 30s or even 40s, men are holding onto adolescence at the very time that women are achieving professional success and looking to find a mate to share it with. A provocative account of the modern sexual economy, Hymowitz deftly charts a gender mismatch that threatens the future of the American family and makes no one happy in the long run.
  47. ^ Philip Zimbardo (2012). The Demise of Guys: Why Boys Are Struggling and What We Can Do About It. celebrated psychologist Philip G. Zimbardo and Nikita Duncan say that an addiction to video games and online porn have created a generation of shy, socially awkward, emotionally removed, and risk-adverse young men who are unable (and unwilling) to navigate the complexities and risks inherent to real-life relationships, school, and employment. ... The book is based on a popular TED Talk which Zimbardo did in 2011, and includes extensive research as well as a TED-exclusive survey that drew responses from more than 20,000 men.
  48. ^ a b Martin Daubney. "Meet the men giving up on women". The Sunday Times. These young men don't want girlfriends; they don't want children; and they don't even want to have sex. The secretive "MGTOW" movement is a fast-growing online community of disillusioned males. But are they misogynists or simply misunderstood? In interviews, Martin Daubney tracks some of them down. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  49. ^ Yiannopoulos, Milo. "The Sexodus, Part 1: The Men Giving Up On Women And Checking Out Of Society". Breitbart News Network. Social commentators, journalists, academics, scientists and young men themselves have all spotted the trend: among men of about 15 to 30 years old, ever-increasing numbers are checking out of society altogether, giving up on women, sex and relationships and retreating into pornography, sexual fetishes, chemical addictions, video games and, in some cases, boorish lad culture, all of which insulate them from a hostile, debilitating social environment created, some argue, by the modern feminist movement.
  50. ^ Milo Yiannopoulos. "The Sexodus, Part 2: Dishonest Feminist Panics Leave Male Sexuality In Crisis". Breitbart News Network. We can be quite sure now that the sexodus is not some fringe, isolated internet movement as "Men Going Their Own Way" has sometimes been characterised. A combination of disastrous social engineering, special privileges for women, the relentless mockery of white men on the basis of their sex and skin colour and the economic and educational abandonment for boys has created one, if not two, lost generations already.
  51. ^ Nicholson, M.S.W., Ph.D., Dr. Jeremy (April 3, 2012). "Why Are Men Frustrated With Dating? Is dating a punishing situation for men?". Psychology Today. The Attraction Doctor. Sussex Publishers, LLC. Retrieved April 6, 2015. finally, some men choose opting out as the best option for them. This is sometimes known as the "men going their own way" (MGTOW) movement. Essentially, these are the guys who have been frustrated and punished to the point that they see no further incentive to relate. Rather than spending their efforts on material success to attract a partner, they focus on making themselves happy. Although these guys are often socially-shamed as "not growing up", in fact, they are arguably just reacting to the lack of outside motivation...and taking care of themselves.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  52. ^ "As a result of these views, such men are making what they see as 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."
  53. ^ Yiannopoulos (2014) part 1: "Many young men literally perform a cost-benefit analysis and decide that women aren’t worth the hassle."
  54. ^ Worley-Lopez, Frank. "MGTOW: Join the Puerto Rico Independence Movement!". PanAm Post. If you’ve been using social media of late, it’s almost impossible that you won’t have come across the MGTOW (Men Going Their Own Way) movement. It’s a response to decades of feminist legal and social hypocrisy and what is often referred to as "gynocentrism."
  55. ^ Daubney (2015). "The truth is that these men feel abandoned, unwanted and even despised."
  56. ^ Hymowitz (2011) "this is bitterness from guys who find the young women they might have hoped to hang out with entitled, dishonest, self-involved, slutty, manipulative, shallow, controlling—and did I mention gold-digging?"
  57. ^ Messner 1997, p. 41–48.
  58. ^ Ashe 2007, p. 57.
  59. ^ Glenn Sacks; Dianna Thompson (2002-07-05). "Have Anti-Father Family Court Policies Led to a Men's Marriage Strike?". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved 2013-07-15.
  60. ^ Wendy McElroy (2003-08-12). "The Marriage Strike". Fox News – Opinion. Retrieved 2013-07-15.
  61. ^ Daubney, Martin. "George Lawlor's story shows how universities have become hostile towards men". Daily Telegraph. For the past two months, I've immersed myself in the highly-secretive (and oft-maligned) world of the MGTOWs – the Men Going Their Own Way. To my sadness, if not surprise, I discovered a rapidly-growing, global army of men who have concluded that sex, relationships, marriage and fathering children in the modern world is simply "too risky". The MGTOWs feel the "gynocentric" system is stacked against men, so they're quietly opting out, preferring instead to retreat into their man caves to indulge in video games, porn, self-improvement through study or the gym. They're finding the comfort of male-only friends, usually online (but not for sex). Despite the fact they are usually sexual pacifists who have figured "the only way to win the game is to not play", for their viewpoints these men are variously dismissed as "toxic misogynists" or ridiculed as "a cult for lonely virgins". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  62. ^ Hymowitz, Kay S. (2008). "Child-Man in the Promised Land". www.city-journal.org. City Journal. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  63. ^ Goldwag, Arthur (Spring 2012). "Leader's Suicide Brings Attention to Men's Rights Movement". Intelligence Report (145). Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved 6 April 2015. Other movement adherents have forsworn sex altogether, or at least romantic relationships and marriage; the acronym they use for themselves is MGTOW, for "Men Going Their Own Way." "If you are willing to marry a woman — any woman — in the West then you must also be willing to become the next murder-suicide story when she threatens to file for divorce, steal your kids out of your life and extort you for every current and future dollar you will ever earn," wrote one commenter at The Spearhead. "If a man kidnapped your children, stole your home, your wallet and your bank account, you'd be more than willing to kill him in self defense. Why is it any different when ex-wives do it with the full force of the law behind them?"
  64. ^ Leachman, G (2013). "Legal Framing". Studies in Law, Politics, and Society. Studies in Law, Politics and Society. Vol. 61. pp. 25–59. doi:10.1108/S1059-4337(2013)0000061005. ISBN 9781781906200. Retrieved November 1, 2013.


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