Into the Incelosphere: Applications of Conceptual Metaphor to Deconstruct Incel Language

Online subcultures are constantly being created since the advent of the Internet, complete with their own forums and coded languages that allow members to exchange ideas freely and without consequences. One of these subcultures, whose members call themselves incels (involuntary celibates), came into the public eye when Elliot Rodger, self-proclaimed incel, committed a mass murder of six people in 2014, and subsequently became a hero among incels for his crimes (Glasstetter, 2014). Resentment towards women and feelings of inadequacy/inability to have intimate relationships with women are prominent characteristics of the incel community (Center for Countering Digital Hate’s [CCDH] Quant Lab, 2022, p. 6). Incels have morphed into a completely male-dominated subculture whose members’ extremist ideologies have caught the attention of security and intelligence agencies around the world (CCDH Quant Lab, 2022, p. 6). By analyzing incel language, researchers can better understand the depth of extremist views towards marginalized groups, particularly women. One way to analyze a particular discourse is to find prominent conceptual metaphors that underlie an ideology. Lakoff and Johnson propose the idea that metaphor is not merely a function of language, but rather a conceptual strategy that influences the way we understand the world (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980, p. 3). I use an online corpus builder called Sketch Engine to analyze incel language. Using the Sketch Engine corpus, as well as the Center for Countering Digital Hate’s in-depth analysis of incel language, I was able to find a network of conceptual metaphors that underlie incel ideologies.