Featured image: (Pacer Graphic / Darby Self)
Calling something “cringe” has become the easiest response to sincerity and one of the strongest masks hiding true emotions.
Cringe is usually associated with the feeling of embarrassment, whether personal or second-hand. It can be a humorous way to tease friends when they buy flowers for a partner or sing a love song to a crush. However, what started as a light teasing trend has become more of an instant, reflexive way of turning down anything that is slightly sincere.
Gen Z has built emotional walls around themselves, often using humor as a substitute to vulnerability. According to Measure Magazine, Gen Z uses humor as their main coping mechanism, and the trend of calling everything cringe is just an extension of that.
This is commonly seen with people trying to fit in or hide their own emotions and desires. Take the flowers example; someone may call it cringe when their friend buys their partner flowers, but only because they want someone to buy flowers for them.
This is not just random speculation. Psychologists agree and suggest this is the main reason for the growth of words such as cringe as projection.
Time Magazine reported that cringe is strongly attached to the feeling of being vulnerable, and people try to avoid it because it forces them to confront their desires and their feeling of wanting to be vulnerable and emotionally open.
When everything is seen as cringe, nothing can be genuine. Being sincere, romantic and vulnerable becomes a punchline and true emotions become the joke.
It has reached a point where even basic kindness is shunned as being cringe. This makes it harder for people to express what they really want.
There is a silver lining, people have slowly started to reclaim cringe. On TikTok and Instagram, students and young adults are posting their hobbies and embracing things that make them happy. Don’t believe it? Grab your phone, open up TikTok and scroll.
Still, this shift will not change the overall. Making a change starts with individuals choosing to not call everything cringe. It starts with being honest with themselves. It is braver to be open and vulnerable then it is to hide behind the word “cringe.”
So next time you feel the urge to call something cringe, take a pause and ask yourself–why? Is what you seeing actually embarrassing, or is it just your uncomfort from seeing someone be brave enough to care out loud?
