Warning: This article contains discussion of sexual assault and suicide which some readers may find distressing
It's safe to say that we're all very much so still reeling after watching Netflix's latest hit series, Adolescence, which only came out a week ago today (13 March).
The four-parter stars the likes of Stephen Graham, Ashley Walters, Erin Doherty, and new talent Owen Cooper. The 'disturbing' storyline follows a father named Eddie Miller (Graham) whose life is turned upside-down when his 13-year-old son Jamie (Cooper) is arrested for the violent murder of one of his female classmates.
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Adolescence is clearly far from shy in confronting a range of extremely topical subjects including misogyny, toxic masculinity, children's safety online, incel culture, and the online 'manosphere'.
In the TV series, Netflix viewers are introduced to number of key terms in regards to the 'manosphere'.
Three terms, however, seem to have piqued particular interest: black pill, blue pill, and red pill - but what on earth do these phrases even mean?
'Manosphere' terminology in Adolescence
The second episode of the series makes a fleeting reference to Andrew Tate, a misogynistic influencer who recently travelled to the US, despite facing charges of rape and human trafficking in Romania.
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It was during this episode that we're also introduced to the secret symbolism in emojis used by teenagers online.
Adolescence sheds a light on the terminology used in online incel communities (Netflix)
What does 'red pill' mean?
We see the lead detective Inspector Bascombe's teenage son, Adam, who also goes to the same school as Jamie and his murdered classmate, explain that the use of a red pill emoji is a reference to a red pill showing the world as it is from The Matrix.
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Adam explained the red pill is like 'I see the truth' and is a call to action by the manosphere. According to the teen, an 'exploding red pill' indicates that someone is an incel.
Adam also adds that the '100' emoji is another incel symbol which is related to the '80 to 20 rule' - AKA the incel theory that 80 percent of women are attracted to 20 percent of men.
When Katie publicly accuses Jamie of being an incel on Instagram, he becomes embarrassed and enraged - feelings that eventually lead to her murder which he said he'd plead guilty to in the final episode.
What does 'blue pill' mean?
Carrying on with The Matrix reference, those who find themselves drawn to fringe political ideas like main character Neo 'feels something he can’t explain… that there’s something wrong with the world'.
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The fictional character is offered a choice: to either swallow the blue pill and remain in the world he knows, oblivious to the real truth, or take the red pill and finally see the 'real' world.
In short, the blue pill is the counterpart to the red pill and is often used by incels towards people they deem remaining blissfully ignorant about how the world works.
To those who have been 'redpilled', everyone else is 'bluepilled'.
In extremist terms, being redpilled means you have bought into at least one of the conspiratorial tropes of the far-right movement and, for many, it is typically the first step down the rabbit hole toward radicalisation.
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What does 'black pill' mean?
In incel culture, the meaning of the black pill is extremely disturbing.
It signifies an incel's belief that their situation is hopeless as, where redpilled incels are dissatisfied about their place in society, they believe there are ways out of their situation - such avenues may include working out or plastic surgery,
Blackpilled incels, however, believe that their situation (not being sexually attractive to women) is permanent and inescapable as, in a blackpilled world, the sexual marketplace is governed exclusively by genetics with no amount of self-improvement able to change this.
This is where things take an even more extremist turn - as if things weren't alarming enough already.
Taking the black pill leaves an incel with only a few limited options which include giving up on life, taking your own life, or fulfilling murderous or rapacious fantasies against women.
Adolescence is available to stream on Netflix now.
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact The Survivors Trust for free on 08088 010 818, available 10am-12.30pm, 1.30pm-3pm and 6pm-8pm Monday to Thursday, 10am-12.30pm and 1.30pm-3pm on Fridays, 10am-12.30pm on Saturdays and 6pm-8pm on Sundays.
Topics: Adolescence, Explained, Netflix, Social Media, TV And Film, Mental Health
Rhiannon Ingle