What started as a TikTok-based trend — an archetype poking fun at men who “curate (their) aesthetic in a way that (they) think might render (them) more likable to progressive women,” says an Aug. 14 article in the New York Times — has now expanded to college campuses and schools across the nation, with Uni students embracing the wave during a Spirit Week dress-up in September.
On Sept. 24, Uni students showed up to school with matcha, Jane Austen novels, tote bags and wired earphones, some bringing Labubus and carabiners, channeling the performative male of TikTok fame.
Senior Chizara Onyemere says she saw many students dress up for the “performative male” dress-up day.
“I saw a lot (of people) dress up,” Onyemere says. “A lot of my friends dressed up.”
Onyemere wore jeans, a tank top and a button down. She also brought “Mrs. Dalloway” by Virginia Woolf and a pair of headphones.
Itza Garcia, junior, participated in “performative male” day by bringing a guitar to school.
“I dressed up pretty nice,” Garcia said. “I brought my guitar to school. I also had my tote bag and got some matcha. It was pretty fun.”
Students on college campuses across the country, including at the University of Illinois, have hosted “performative male” contests. On TikTok, the hashtag #performative has tens of thousands of posts with users simulating what it would be like to go on a date with a performative male; how performative males act “in the wild”; and the various books read and media consumed by people who practice the lifestyle.
Onyemere says the trend is a way to poke fun at men who try to “seem different for female attention.”
“It was very nice to see the different takes on the performative male,” Onyemere says. “But I feel like you should just be yourself.”
