POWER FANTASIES IN THE ATTENTION ECONOMY: SOLO LEVELING AND THE PSYCHOLOGICAL APPEAL OF ALGORITHMIC MERITOCRACY AMONG DIGITAL YOUTH

Abstract

The rising popularity of level-up narratives in webtoon and anime among youth, while indicative of a fascination with the fantasy genre, also reflects deeper cultural negotiations with algorithmic systems that structure contemporary digital life. This paper examines Solo Leveling, as a cultural text that embodies the ideological foundation of the modern attention economy. Its popularity across different forms is derived from its world of algorithmic meritocracy as emotionally satisfying and socially legitimate. Central to this narrative is the “System”, a hidden, authoritative system that assesses effort, grants reward and promises upward mobility through quantifiable performance. This paper argues that Solo Leveling offers a fantasy of perfect recognition, where labour is seen, performance is measured and corresponding outcomes are fair. For digital youth living in social media characterized by precarity, invisibility, inconsistent performance metrics and rewards, this narrative provides psychological reassurance. The protagonist rises from a weakling to an overpowered superhuman. This progression functions as algorithmic wish-fulfillment, a desire for a system that fairly converts effort to value. The analysis highlights how the series privileges individual enhancement over collective action. Emotional connect is created through grind culture, rigourous self-discipline and perseverance, which reinforces meritocratic myth and overlooks structural inequality. This draws on parasocial identification; viewers internalize the struggles as a proxy for their own aspirations within data-driven environment. This study conducts a qualitative textual analysis of crucial narrative arcs within the world of stat screens, rank disclosures and reward notifications as media objects. These are analyzed alongside fan discourse to examine youth perception and affective investment.