The truth about “Sigma Males"
A tale of toxic masculinity and romanticising loneliness
In recent times, we have saw the rise of the “sigma male" or the “sigma grindset". Many people may still not know what this phenomenon is, so I thought I would share my thoughts on the idea of Alphas vs Sigmas, and where I believe this trend has originated from.
Alpha — The Head of the Pack
In wolf packs, there are different roles played by the different parts of it. An ‘alpha’ is the head of the wolf pack, and is the one who is the most commanding. They lead the pack on a hunt, they get the first meal, they are not to be challenged by those in lower ranks. Then, you have the ‘betas’, who are subordinate to the higher ranking alphas. They have to wait to eat, they also are less attractive to mates and follow the word of the alpha. Finally, there are the ‘omegas’, who are considered the weakest of the group. They are usually the fool, the one that likes to play and be the entertainment, and they are below even the betas when it comes to feeding.
Whilst these terms are used in ethology to describe rankings in a typical animal grouping, it has now also been taken to describe behaviours of people, particularly in males. In 1982, dutch ethologist Frans de Waal described how these terms used to describe his chimp colonies could be applied to human social interaction. Following this, media companies began to use this term to describe “manly men”, or successful business men. It was used to describe Al Gore, the former US presidential candidate, in 1999, with him displaying ‘beta’ traits when he ought to have been more of an ‘alpha’.
In the early 2000s, this trend began to skyrocket. Everybody, from magazines to self help books to “pick-up artists”, began to use the coined term for the “ideal man”, typically somebody who is confident and dominant. Along the way, the term moved from simply being self-assured to arrogant, with the links to this mindset coming back to misogyny, that women want a man who displays acts of dominance and bullying. However, this is often not the case, as it would be the status of a person, and their actions, rather than their cocky-ness or bloated ego which would attract a partner.
On the other hand, the rise of the ‘alpha male’ led to the rise in usage (but fall in respect) of the ‘beta male’. These tend to be considered nerds or weak individuals, who are shy or low in confidence. They may also have a mental condition, such as autism, which makes them “non-desirable”. Other terms, such as “soy boys” or “cucks”, are also often used, implying that they are happy to let the alphas go for their partners. It is a word used to insult, whereas alphas tend to be called that in a positive manner.
Whilst people’s perceptions may be that an alpha is a bully and arrogant, and that a beta is kind and shy, this is not always the case. Alpha males can be confident individuals with status, who do not look to intimidate other males. Whereas beta males can be rather scheming and manipulative, pretending to be the way they are. They can also be misogynistic, believing being a “white knight” or showing a female basic decency means they should be grateful or be with them.
Sigma — A One-Man Pack
Whilst an alpha and beta are part of the same wolf pack, a sigma is a lone wolf, who is not involved in the traditional hierarchical norms. They hunt alone and are self-sufficient. Typically, this is to find mates and form new packs. They struggle to at first, as the family unit is not longer there to support the hunt and for interaction, and they must learn quick to survive.
This term has been popularised in the last 5 years, as a word for somebody even more masculine than an alpha as rather than look for females, they work on themselves. As previously stated, this is not true in the animal kingdom, as often lone wolves are looking to form a new pack, and struggle to hunt and mate alone, but this is forgotten in internet culture. It has skyrocketed in popularity on social media platforms like TikTok, which has a flurry of videos which refer to the fact that a person should develop themselves and forgot about social interactions.
This is tied to a ‘grindset’, were a person will be alone to focus on becoming successful. Getting up early, going to the gym, developing your knowledge on profitable past times like investing are just some of the tactics for this asset set. Doing these things is supposed to make you more successful and more wealthy, but it comes at the sacrifice of interacting with loved ones.
On Tiktok, the idea of a sigma male has been inextricably tied to certain pop-culture icons, such as Christian Bale’s role as Patrick Bateman in the movie American Psycho. That film sees Bateman as a loner, who is constantly working to be the perfect male, in appearance, status and wealth. Other popular culture figures, such as Tyler Durden and Tony Montana, have also been hijacked by this movement, to show characters who lack empathy and who are only out for themselves.
Sigma male enthusiasts also tend to have misogynistic and homophobic tendencies. Many follow Andrew Tate, among others influencers, who tend to be materialistic and chauvinistic, and it has led to many people copying these behaviours. They hold resentment for others, and a “the world is against me” attitude, whilst failing to notice why they truly are idolising this state of being.
The truth about ‘Sigma Males’
The truth is, sigma males are just another example of romanticising loneliness. It is somebody who is alone, gaslighting themselves into believing that this is on purpose, that loneliness is healthy and that cutting yourself off from the world and being focused solely on yourself is the right way to be. Sigma males are like a cross between an alpha and a beta male, in that a sigma male attitude is when a beta male’s inferiority complex is met with the arrogance of an alpha male. It is a beta male, listening to other beta males who are trying to appear more like an alpha.
It is not the first time loneliness has been fantasized, and it will not be the last. Whilst alone, you can improve yourself, you can become smarter, stronger, more cultured and a better human. However, this mindset can be toxic, and it is unfortunately a growing one in today’s society.
Isolation is being romanticised as cool and a “sigma mindset", when really it is just a coping mechanism for being alone
