Petro-masculinity

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Petro-masculinity is a variety of masculinity associated with the petroculture and fossil fuel industry, including both the workers in the industry and promoters of the industry in the large social and civic space. Though petro-masculinities have existed as part of different fossil fuel industries, the analysis of them became important in the late 2010s as the connection of masculinity cultures with climate denial. [1]

The widespread use of the term started with Cara Daggett's in her 2018 paper "Petro-masculinity: Fossil Fuels and Authoritarian Desire" argues that petromasculinity connects male identify with various issues of power such as colonialism and extractivism. [1] [2]

Petromasculinity tends to emphasize several different types of cultural performances of masculinity, including:

Together, these narratives have become aligned with far-right and authoritarian politics in much of Europe and North America, [4] [3] and is advanced by influencers in masculinity culture, such as Manosphere influencers Andrew Tate, Joe Rogan and Jordan Peterson. [7]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Daggett, Cara (2018-09-01). "Petro-masculinity: Fossil Fuels and Authoritarian Desire" . Millennium. 47 (1): 25–44. doi:10.1177/0305829818775817. ISSN   0305-8298.
  2. "Highlights on Petro-Masculinity: An Interview With Cara Daggett". WEDO. 2025-05-14. Retrieved 2025-11-19.
  3. 1 2 3 Manhire, Ryan (2024). "Love Thy Enemy? : Understanding and Responding to the Self-Destructive Necro-Politics of Petro-Masculine Climate Refusal". Sukupuolentutkimus-Genusforskning (in Finnish). 37 (4): 27–43. ISSN   2342-0634.
  4. 1 2 3 Bortoluzzi, Maria; Zurru, Elisabetta, eds. (2024). "Discourses of cycling advocacy and power amidst wars, petro-masculinity and climate inaction". Ecological Communication and Ecoliteracy: Discourses of Awareness and Action for the Lifescape. Bloomsbury Advances in Ecolinguistics. London: Bloomsbury Academic. ISBN   978-1-350-33583-7.
  5. "Petro-masculinity and the politics of climate refusal". The Autonomy Institute. Retrieved 2025-11-19.
  6. 1 2 and Michael C. Mitchell (2025-07-28). "How Hypermasculinity Fuels Environmental Destruction". Better Worlds. Retrieved 2025-11-19.
  7. "Carbon Bros, Ep 1: The Testosterone Pipeline". Drilled. Retrieved 2025-11-19.