Negotiating Femininity With Chinese Male Bodies: Discourses of Makeup in Men’s Lifestyle Magazines in Post-2000 China

There has been a growing body of research on feminine men in China, particularly in relation to the state’s critical stance, but few studies have examined discourses on male makeup. Drawing on the theoretical framework of hybrid masculinity, this paper analyzes articles on male makeup from two Chinese men’s lifestyle magazines published from the late 2000s to 2023. These articles construct male makeup discourse in three ways circumventing the state’s negative views on and potential stigmatization of feminine men: (1) avoiding femininity by separating male makeup from female makeup or by emphasizing heterosexuality; (2) positioning male makeup as a gender-neutral practice; and (3) seeking justification from pre-modern Chinese male makeup practices to show that male makeup is an acceptable practice even today. Through this analysis, this paper argues that Chinese male makeup discourses construct the concept of femininity, which has been closely associated with women’s beautification practices, as seemingly fluid while still supporting gender hierarchy, thereby reaffirming the limitations of hybrid masculinity.