CCT 109: Contemporary Communication Technologies
Contemporary Communication Technologies
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CCT 109: Contemporary Communication Technologies
Reverse Outline: “Going to Work in Mommy’s Basement”
Introduction
● Paragraph 1
● Argument: Sharma sets up the emerging cultural figure of the “troll in Mommy’s
basement” (Sharma, 2018, p.86) as a focal theme for the essay that will be
explored in relation to its incubation of conservative ideologies in the world of
tech.
● Evidence: Roosh V is drawn upon as an introductory example as an anti-gay,
anti-feminist internet personality who was revealed to be hiding in his Mother’s
basement
Analysis: Sharma posits that Roosh V’s hateful personality online corresponds to
his powerlessness or “lack” in “real life” (p. 86).
● Paragraph 2
● Topic Sentence: Sharma notes that discussion of “Mommy’s basement” cannot
be untangled from a discussion of “the Mother” (i.e. the cultural expectation and
stereotype of feminine care)
Evidence: N/A
● Analysis: Sharma argues that the trope of “Mommy’s basement” contributes to a
devaluation of maternal labour and is integral to how patriarchy shores up power.
● Paragraph 3
● Topic sentence: Sharma frames the figure of an alienated, grown white male
dependent on his Mother’s care as signaling a cultural identity of the “gender
separatist” (p. 87).
● Evidence: Sharma links the identity’s anti-feminist rhetoric to videogames, the
incel and male abstinence movement and the men’s right discussion boards on
reddit or 4chan.
● Analysis: N/A
● Paragraph 4
● Topic sentence: Sharma nuances this initial sketch of the “internet troll”,
acknowledging its alternative persona of a “misguided but articulate misogynist”
(p. 87).
Evidence: Sharma notes alt-right personality Milo Yiannopoulos as an example
to contextualize this persona.
3
● Analysis: Sharma points out that rather than examining the complexity of societal
issues and “structural inequities” (p.87), men’s rights groups locate feminism and
the entry of women in the workplace as the source of male disempowerment.
● Paragraph 5
● Topic sentence: Sharma cautions the reader that simplifying these
disenfranchised males as simply turning away to the distraction of gaming and
porn fails to acknowledge how these men understand the relationship between
technology and gender.
Evidence: Quotes from Milo Yiannopoulos and David Levy are cited to clarify
this distinction.
● Analysis: In both quotes, technology is viewed as a way to sublimate sexual
frustrations with women into technological objects, further codifying the men’s
rights view of women as objectifiable and positioning technologies as a way to
restore the patriarchal roles of “care” and “intimacy” (p. 88) they perceive women
to be responsible for.