his worldview is very that flavor of trans identity where a person expresses their transness by way of insisting on participating in really strict, inflexible, and sexist gender norms. He's a boy, so by God he will prove himself to be the best boy within his culture's incredibly narrow notion of what a boy is and does. This is recognizably a way people approach transition sometimes, but I found it tiring to read about in all its authenticity and intense . . . 16ness.

Oh dear. It's definitely a thing (and like, a phase a couple of my trans guy friends went through, especially those who transitioned like 15 - 20 years ago, before growing out of it to become very active feminists) but that does sound very tiring.