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Affectively Contesting Digital Feminism: The “Average yet Confident Men” Controversy in 2020s China

Chen, Jiayao (2026) COSM40 20261
Centre for East and South-East Asian Studies, Lund University
Abstract
This thesis explores the dynamics of digital feminism in 2020s China through a qualitative case study of the Yang Li controversy, focusing on her widely circulated phrase “average yet confident men” (普信男). It examines how Yang Li’s comedy is interpreted, defended, criticized, and politicized across three Chinese social media platforms: Weibo, Bilibili, and Xiaohongshu. Drawing on popular feminism, networked misogyny, platformization, affective-discursive practice, and made-in-China feminism(s), the study situates the controversy within broader socio-economic contexts. It combines framing analysis, critical discourse analysis, and affective discursive analysis, based on 230 publicly available posts and comments coded through NVivo. The... (More)
This thesis explores the dynamics of digital feminism in 2020s China through a qualitative case study of the Yang Li controversy, focusing on her widely circulated phrase “average yet confident men” (普信男). It examines how Yang Li’s comedy is interpreted, defended, criticized, and politicized across three Chinese social media platforms: Weibo, Bilibili, and Xiaohongshu. Drawing on popular feminism, networked misogyny, platformization, affective-discursive practice, and made-in-China feminism(s), the study situates the controversy within broader socio-economic contexts. It combines framing analysis, critical discourse analysis, and affective discursive analysis, based on 230 publicly available posts and comments coded through NVivo. The findings show that supporters frame Yang Li as an advocate for women, reading her comedy as feminist recognition, counter-speech, and critique of patriarchal privilege. Opponents delegitimize her through misandry accusation, gender antagonism, profit-seeking manipulation, and patriotic backlash. Ambivalent users reflect on comedy boundaries, platform amplification, and gender polarization. Overall, the thesis argues that digital feminism in China gains visibility through popular culture and affective circulation. This visibility also makes feminist expression vulnerable to anti gender labeling and reframing. Critiques of patriarchal privilege are recast as gender antagonism, commercial opportunism, or social threat, obscuring the structural asymmetries behind women’s everyday struggles. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Chen, Jiayao
supervisor
organization
course
COSM40 20261
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Digital feminism, Everyday feminism, Popular feminism, Networked misogyny, Platformization, Yang Li, Stand-up comedy
language
English
id
9243434
date added to LUP
2026-06-24 11:18:00
date last changed
2026-06-24 11:18:00
@misc{9243434,
  abstract     = {{This thesis explores the dynamics of digital feminism in 2020s China through a qualitative case study of the Yang Li controversy, focusing on her widely circulated phrase “average yet confident men” (普信男). It examines how Yang Li’s comedy is interpreted, defended, criticized, and politicized across three Chinese social media platforms: Weibo, Bilibili, and Xiaohongshu. Drawing on popular feminism, networked misogyny, platformization, affective-discursive practice, and made-in-China feminism(s), the study situates the controversy within broader socio-economic contexts. It combines framing analysis, critical discourse analysis, and affective discursive analysis, based on 230 publicly available posts and comments coded through NVivo. The findings show that supporters frame Yang Li as an advocate for women, reading her comedy as feminist recognition, counter-speech, and critique of patriarchal privilege. Opponents delegitimize her through misandry accusation, gender antagonism, profit-seeking manipulation, and patriotic backlash. Ambivalent users reflect on comedy boundaries, platform amplification, and gender polarization. Overall, the thesis argues that digital feminism in China gains visibility through popular culture and affective circulation. This visibility also makes feminist expression vulnerable to anti gender labeling and reframing. Critiques of patriarchal privilege are recast as gender antagonism, commercial opportunism, or social threat, obscuring the structural asymmetries behind women’s everyday struggles.}},
  author       = {{Chen, Jiayao}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Affectively Contesting Digital Feminism: The “Average yet Confident Men” Controversy in 2020s China}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}