On the Nature of Man: Solitude, Politics, and Ritual in the Modern Age
A conversation with Thoren “Thor” Bradley.
Edit: I’ve deleted the line about chopping wood shirtless- even though it was FUNNY. It’s irresponsible, I’m told — a detail that, in retrospect, says more about my own projection than the subject himself. My journalistic integrity, such as it was, began to fray the moment the conversation turned toward the politics of today. Still, accuracy matters. And while the image remains amusing, I have no desire to misrepresent Thor — or to let a misread moment stand in for the truth.
In the digital wilderness of social media — where masculinity is filtered, monetized, and sold by the algorithmic pound — Thor Bradley stands out. Not just because he’s shirtless in most of his videos, or because he’s egg-rich thanks to a personal chicken coop, or even because National Parks across America have shamelessly repurposed his thirst traps to promote conservation. No — it’s because, unlike everyone else, he doesn’t seem to be selling you anything.
Online, there’s a growing expectation that creators represent more than just content — they’re expected to mirror their followers’ values. In a culture where influence is currency, neutrality no longer sells. Whether it’s genuine or strategic doesn’t seem to matter as much as the perception of purpose. To stand for something is now part of the job.
But Thor doesn’t present as someone pushing an agenda. Instead, he’s a striking contradiction — rugged yet reflective, viral yet grounded. In conversation, he’s less an influencer and more of a thinker, unpacking masculinity not through aesthetics or slogans, but through self-awareness.
What unfolded wasn’t an interview. It was a meditation — on how we live, how we consume, and how men are building themselves, often on unstable ground. What follows is a curated transcript: less Q&A, more living document of someone trying not just to be a man, but a person. It’s not polished, and neither is he — and that’s kind of the point.
The Internet of Things
Do you ever feel like you’re playing a character—or performing masculinity—for the internet? Or is this who you’ve always been?
Honestly, I think I’m actually less masculine online than I am in real life. But at the same time, my masculinity feels less authentic on the internet. In real life, I’m far more patient, more understanding. I take the time to show up for the people around me.
The most masculine things I do daily aren’t really things you can capture in a video. It’s how I care for my loved ones. I show up. I help out. It would be so easy to go full alt-right Joe Rogan. Or go ultra-liberal and keep posting about Trump. Rage-bait works. But then I’m not bridging anything — I’m just exploiting it.
The quietest thing I’ve done is think. I’ll make five or six videos and then stop. Because I want to cultivate a perspective — not just perform one.
On the Nature of Man
What does modern masculinity mean to you in a time when traditional gender roles are being redefined or rejected altogether?
Gender doesn’t really fascinate me. I care more about meeting people where they’re at—getting to know them, letting them show me which parts of themselves matter most. Whether someone is gay, trans, or of a different gender, it’s not something I fixate on. Those conversations can be complex, but what matters to me is understanding the human being in front of me.
What does interest me is the value of both masculine and feminine energy—how that balance shapes individuals and society. I believe there’s something important about embracing both, internally and culturally.
I actually feel less masculine online than I do in real life, because the things that make me feel most like a man aren’t visible. They’re about how I treat the people I love—being patient, present, and emotionally available. That’s not something you can always turn into a video.
I don’t think chopping wood or yelling on a podcast makes you masculine. That feels more like theater to me. A lot of men seem to be desperate to be heard right now, but they end up forcing their opinions into conversations where no one asked.
What really bothers me is how obsessed some men are—particularly on the right—with things that have nothing to do with them. They go on and on about trans people or gender in sports without ever having met a trans person or reading anything about the reality of these issues. It’s not about concern; it’s about control. It’s boyish, whiny, and immature.
To me, real masculinity looks like building a healthy, inclusive community. It looks like showing up for people, creating safety, and not needing to be the loudest voice in the room. It’s also about standing up for what’s right—even when it doesn’t directly affect you.
If you’re fighting to keep others marginalized, you’re standing on a ridiculous hill. And when you marginalize others, you bring that harm closer to yourself—even if you’re a white, straight, cis man. Freedom is connected. When others gain rights, your rights become more secure too. So I don’t understand why anyone would want anything less than absolute liberty and freedom for everyone in our society.
Thor notes his audience: Instagram skews female, TikTok is balanced, YouTube leans male. Like standing in a crowded town square, he’s admired yet scrutinized from all sides. Our conversation does not come from judgment but a lament—a mourning for lost rites of passage, replaced by endless scrolling where screens, not ceremonies, mark the fading transition into adulthood.
Most young men today don’t have a masculine arena to play in. They’re not doing — they’re watching. They consume masculinity voyeuristically. Podcasts, fantasy football, porn… It’s all secondhand. They’re living in a third-person world. Their identities are built on content, not contact. That foundation? Shaky — like San Francisco on a landfill. If you’ve never actually done the thing — built the fire, hunted the animal, fixed the water line — your beliefs aren’t grounded in anything. That’s why they’re always trying to prove something.
Thor reframes insecurities felt by young men today, not as fragility but as disconnection- from work, from community, from a sense of self filtered through constant feedback.
All men are insecure. But young men today? It’s not that they’re weak. It’s that they’re constantly thinking about how they’re being perceived. They’ve never been needed. Never felt the effects of being there for someone.
You can’t become secure without experience. You can’t become whole just by watching others.
I see this new generation of men — cartoonishly masculine, only validated by other men. It’s like they lift weights for the compliments. Not from women, but from other guys in the gym. It’s performative masculinity. Men are becoming — or trying to become — hyperbolic versions of what other men like. You know what I mean? It’s like when a guy lifts so much he’s no longer attracting women, he’s just earning nods of approval from other guys at the gym. And I don’t mean that in a gay way — I’m talking specifically about straight men here.
Being conventionally attractive online comes with its own challenges—how do you navigate both admiration and objectification?
I’ve struggled with it a bit, but honestly, objectification doesn’t really bother me. It hasn’t put me in harm’s way the way it has for a lot of women. There’s a real danger there—especially when men (and yes, sometimes women too, but statistically it’s mostly men) feel entitled to a woman’s time and attention just because they’re attracted to her. I don’t experience that.
When I meet gay men in person, they’ve always been respectful. And women, even when they’re not exactly respectful in the comments, have been respectful in real life. But even online, I’ve never felt threatened. If I ever felt a line was crossed, I’d speak up. I’m confident that if I made a video expressing that something made me uncomfortable, women would respect that and back off. So it feels mutual in a way that’s important to me.
What I really hope people take from this, though, is that I think sexual liberation is important—especially in America. We need to be able to have hard conversations about sexuality, attraction, and boundaries. I believe that the more open we are to these conversations, the better our society becomes. Of course, there’s a time and place for everything, and age-appropriate content is important to me.
That said, I’m not a fan of how popular pornography has become. I’m not against its existence—I think sex work should absolutely be legal and safe—but I don’t think constant voyeuristic consumption of porn is healthy for us.
What is healthy, in my opinion, is when people find themselves attracted to someone online—not someone with an OnlyFans necessarily, but someone who just shares their lifestyle, their values, or how they carry themselves. That kind of attraction can be a tool for self-reflection. It can teach you about your own sexuality, your identity, and the kind of life or energy you want to embody.
Attraction can help you figure out what you like or don’t like about yourself. Sometimes it’s not even sexual—it’s about admiring the way someone moves through the world. It’s like a Pinterest board: your fyp (for you page) should reflect what genuinely inspires you. If you’re paying attention, those moments of attraction can actually help you feel more grounded in who you are and more secure in your sexuality.
But again, it’s about balance. There's a difference between engaging thoughtfully and just consuming content passively. Unfortunately, I don’t think the way we often consume porn today is good for us. But I do think attraction, when it's rooted in curiosity and respect, can be a really healthy gateway to self-discovery.
On Integrity and Identity
Thor tries to live a modest lifestyle, he does not romanticize this either. But he respects it. And that groundedness seems to be what he’s fighting to protect- from society, from clout, from himself.
I don’t think I’m worth more just because I have a big following. It’s not about being special — it’s about being consistent. I show up, I post, and the app rewards that. That’s it.
To keep myself grounded, I check in daily. I go for walks, drive in silence, no lyrics, no noise — just space to think. I ask myself: Is this the life I want? Is this still aligned with the life I set out to build?
So when offers come — red carpets, $50,000 brand deals — I say no. Not out of pride, but out of protection. Because once you say yes, your brain adjusts. A new normal form. Suddenly, your time feels like it should always be worth that much. And to keep making that kind of money, you have to keep living that kind of life.
But I don’t want that life. I love my slow pace — the outdoors, the solitude, the work I do on my own terms. I’m not willing to trade that for visibility or a quick check. I’d rather make less and stay myself.
Because once you shift your lifestyle, it’s hard to shift it back.
I’d rather make less money than people think I should, given my following and exposure, if it means staying true to myself. I’d rather hustle for creative income than take the easy checks that come with selling out — because I know once I start, it’ll change how I think. The money gets easier, and suddenly the slow-paced life I’ve worked so hard to build becomes harder to hold onto.
I have to walk a tightrope because it's like, OK, but how deep into this opinion stuff do I want to get? There's so much nuance in the world. If you say one thing, people want more.
People were just grateful that I wasn't super right wing or super conservative. It could have been easy to exploit that and become super liberal. It's not just following the route that gets you more attention. It would have been easy to keep making more liberal posts, virtue signaling for clicks, constantly complaining about Trump. You can lean into that and take advantage of it. I try to carefully not do that because a lot of my opinions that I believe are novel come from taking time to not speak. I think more than I speak. I don't make videos that lead me into my own echo chamber.
If I keep leaning into politics, which is very easy to do, it’s the easiest form of media online—rage baiting or telling people what they want to hear. You can look all over TikTok, find what the liberal or conservative sides say, pick a side, and exploit those people.
I don’t think that brings value because I won’t bridge the divide between men and women by doing that. If I lean too heavily into telling women what they want to hear, keep saying how much of an ally I am and how much men suck, I won’t connect with men or make any difference.
On Politics and Being Loud Enough
My issue with Donald Trump isn’t just about him—it’s about the idolization of him. If he were just a reality TV star, I honestly wouldn’t care. The way he behaves often feels like a stand-up bit, a constant attempt to grab attention. The problem is how divisive he is—and how willingly he leans into that division.
What really bothers me is that when you know you have support from white nationalists, bigots, and racists, you have a responsibility to publicly denounce them. I’m not saying Trump is secretly cheering for neo-Nazis behind closed doors—but I am saying he’s done very little to distance himself from the people who are. That’s my issue with the current administration—it’s becoming increasingly alarming that they’re not distancing themselves from groups and ideologies that are clearly aligning with them.
Thor speaking out on this topic also stemmed from rumors that he was a Trump supporter—sparked by a comment someone made that started trending on Twitter. His confusion was sincere, as he’s been openly critical of Donald Trump and his administration years prior.
On Sustainability and Self-Awareness
How do you think this conversation about just nature and food and climate in America needs to shift or if a shift is necessary in your opinion?
I think there’s a real elitism on the left right now—especially when it comes to environmental issues. For example, someone might criticize a person for cutting down trees, assuming it’s harmful, without understanding the basics of healthy forest management. Sometimes, removing dead or excess trees is necessary to keep a forest healthy.
On the flip side, they might champion tree planting without realizing that, in some regions, planting too many of the same kind of tree can harm biodiversity. It's similar to monocrop agriculture. You end up with thousands of same-age trees that don’t actually support a healthy ecosystem. There’s a disconnect—people are well-educated but not always well-informed. It’s the same with electric energy. A few years ago, many insisted it was the green solution without realizing that much of our electricity still comes from burning coal and oil.
I split my own wood. I raise chickens. I hunt my food. I’m not saying everyone should — but it makes me aware. Aware of how much energy I use. Aware of how much I consume. People romanticize almond milk and electric cars — but don’t understand the damage from monocrops, the coal used to power electricity.
I kind of overshot the sustainability thing, not on purpose. It's been how I lived my life since I was a kid. So this stuff isn't new to me, but I kind of overshot it a little bit. And now I'm kind of like producing a lot of things. And I'm like, I don't need all of this. So that's not necessarily sustainable, is it? Because I'm using a lot of resources to create a lot of things and I don't need half of those things.
On Partnership
The most masculine thing I’ve ever done? Create space for my wife to grow — without needing me to be a part of it. Real partnership means asking: are you happy? Do you like your life? Not once, but all the time. Because love should be a place where you get to become more yourself. I’m not against stay-at-home roles. But you have to make space for the other person to have an identity outside of you.
If they’re always asking: ‘What do I want to do?’ but haven’t experienced the world… that’s not fair. You can’t explore your interests if you’ve never left the house.
The most important thing in a relationship is constantly checking in through good communication—really getting to the bottom of the other person’s everyday thoughts and concerns. There should never be moments where you’re unsure where they’re at or what they’re interested in.
As long as that’s the case, I don’t need to be involved in everything you do—I just want to know how you feel about doing those things. And that’s it.
Want More?
You can follow Thor on TikTok/Instagram and catch more of his thoughts. If you liked this conversation, let me know in the comments. I’ll be sharing more interviews navigating culture, character, and contradiction in our digital world.
This was so well articulated, I really love what you said about voyeuristic masculinity. I am so conscious about this as I am raising my son’s and trying to give them real hands on experience over digital experiences. I am a firm believer that authenticity and sticking to your core principles and not selling out the easy way will always win in the end. Really great read, thank you for this!
Really fantastic article. We all need to live with philosophies like these. Thoren and his lovely wife are on the right path. I’m thoroughly impressed. Thank you.