Performing patriarchy through play: entertainment-symbolic misogyny and the queer reproduction of gender on Douyin

This article examines how misogynistic logics are reproduced through gay men’s digital practices on Douyin. Drawing on twenty-one semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis, it analyzes the consumption of vulgarized female influencers and feminized performances among gay men. The article argues that gay men appropriate female symbols to produce community belonging while internalizing patriarchal hierarchies. Platform algorithms, tagging practices, and entertainment-oriented circulation further amplify vulgar femininity and stigmatizing nonnormative expressions. To capture this process, the article develops the concept of entertainment-symbolic misogyny, showing how femininity is commodified, circulated, and disciplined as humor within platformed queer culture.