5 / 29
May 2019

I would put this in the stupid questions topic, but I think it's a pretty big question that could be answered from many points of view...it is a question about culture, after all.

Anyway, I just realized that I don't know what the phrase means. I know what it means to cringe and to be cringy, but that's about it.

  • created

    May '19
  • last reply

    Apr '20
  • 28

    replies

  • 10.3k

    views

  • 22

    users

  • 121

    likes

Cringe culture is usually when people make fun of others for liking something that's deemed "cringey". Of course, a lot of the times, the people they make fun of aren't doing anyone any harm. They're just having fun.

Cringe Culture makes fun of that fun. It's kinda gate-keeping in a way.

You know how people still talk about "Mary Sues" and how "they're cringey and bad characters"? Yeah -- that's part of Cringe Culture, especially when some go out of their way to explain to someone why the content they view is cringe and why they're silly for liking it.

Cringe Culture does not really pin-point on actual problematic or questionable content. It can sometimes, but a lot of the time, it's really just personal preferences being used as "the law". It's more like:

"UGH, this idiot made a demon-angel OC. That's so 2005"

Now, some people can self-cringe, especially when it comes to viewing their own works. But, that's completely separate from Cringe Culture because it's often played more for laughs. Generally, no one is trying to hurt their own feelings or someone else's feelings when they self-cringe on their old art. It's a sign of self-growth and memories.

Personally I find Cringe Culture annoying, because cringe is a subjective feeling (Is it even considered a feeling? I have no idea. xD) and people throw that word around too much when they simply just dislike something.

The whole cringe culture scene is something I really can't stand. Lately its something very negative. Mr Metokur. Leafy Is here and others have made a career out of it. They look for anything to call cringe on and bash away in videos.

I'd say @Jenny-Toons summed it up pretty well

It's definitely exhausting to say the least especially when things being called cringe-y like was said is just people trying to enjoy things that make them happy. Obviously some things are harmful and in those cases it's not cringe it's just bad.

Most often I've seen cringe culture target specific fandoms, beginner artists or things people don't take interest in. It's way to easy to find "cringe compilations" on Youtube (or elsewhere as I'm sure it's out there) and it's always the same thing yet every time it's masked as being a critique or "entertainment"

Other people have summed it up well, but one thing I find annoying about it is that it tends to target kids.

If you like Minecraft, that's cringe—because kids play it.
If you like Fortnite, that's cringe—because kids play it.
If you make a so-called "edgy" OC, that's cringe—because those are the types of OCs that kids make.

Like, is it really so wrong to like something that kids enjoy? And maybe you're making fun of actual children. Do you really want to destroy their self-esteem just because what they're doing is somehow personally offensive to you?

It's just dumb. Let people do what they want, for Pete's sake. It's not like you have to participate.

definitely this!

one thing that bugs me with that is that the idea of

"once you grow up you can't enjoy certain things because your an adult and liking it would make you childish"

and it's honestly really stressing

I hate when people say that. Especially when they have to throw in that extra punch that if you like it and you are an adult you must be some kind of pedo. That is always the go to insult.

Especially this. A lot of times, it's "critiquing" without the artists knowing and giving consent. The intent is never to actually help someone but to tear them down, and people get a kick outta doing it.

Cringe Culture also has hypocrisy to it. Person A will make fun of beginner artists and everyone else. But if someone starts to shit on them for what they like, Person A immediately claims "Oh, you just don't get it. What I like is for serious people" or something along those lines. Never mind that what they like could also appeal to kids too or if it's no different than the content they shit on.

They're not very fun at parties.

This is the big one for me especially when it's unwarranted critique. I've seen folks throw in the towel or come close because of winding up in those and it agitates me to no end.

I look at this two ways and accept critique if I'm wrong. There's definitely cases where a person absolutely means no harm to minors and simply enjoys things that may be targeted towards a younger audience and that's fine. I still like care bears, MLP and the strawberry shortcake franchises but that doesn't make me a creeper.

I think the issue is when there's clear harm or suggested harm of a minor. Instances of an underage character being sexualized or assaulted, that's problematic. What it boils down to I think is knowing what's what and properly pointing it out

Yes that is true. What I've caught flak over though has been still playing Minecraft, when I was doing Ark (which really isn't a game for kids) videos I had people saying I should stop that I was into kids stuff so I must be a pedo. That always set my temper off.

well i can see why you'd be upset.

Honestly I just don't get why people give Minecraft (or other franchises for that matter) so much flak, especially when most of them are relatively harmless

It's something so baaaddd, but you just can't stop watching because its like either a dumpster fire, or a really bad car-wreck happening in real time.

It can be from really bad stuff, so-bad-its-good stuff, good stuff but with a really bad scene, gross moments on TV or movies, whatever it may be. You just basically look like this when you're done.

me neither.....maybe is the twentysomething-teenager version of complaining about today`s youth.

Which is really sad when you think about it.

It's basically "I'm too cool and adult for this kids stuff" bully teen additude that was run to the ground in 80's-90's cliches. Only it was boring then and is a cringe in itself now - because being mad or irritated at other people for harmless creativity and fun only makes you the wet sock. I actually only stopped to rethink this mindset myself rather recently, since I realized of how much fun I robbed myself as a teen in fear of being seen as cringy. And that it's just a negative attitude that's not productive for anyone.

i agree that cringe is subjective, i watched a kid ride down the hill in a wagon, holding a dab............ the cringe is that the kid refused to break the dab to try to block himself from face slamming into a fence

tbh, I didn't know there was something like a "cringe culture" O_o
For me "cringey" is something I can't look at because it is like Fremdschämen (external embarassement), or some things I can simply not understand (like: people know that there are certain TV channels that aim for public embarassment of their participants in gameshows or "documentations", looking at you here RTL! But still people sign these contracts and are forced to act like their IQ is negative, I mean, why???)

Oh, yeah, end self-cringe XD I admittedly wrote fanfics and added some Mary Sue self insert ones... some of them are actually pleasant to read, while others... well, kill it with fire ^^". And old art. You can't beat your old art - from Kindergarten it's sweet and cute, while there are some phases of your artistic life that better never come to the public XD;

It is not about dissing someone having fun what tey are doing. I especially hate it when people discourage young artists that way - we all started out on the bottom and noone was born as a master. In my understanding, cringe had something to do with deliberately being a dork (or let others make you a dork and embarrass in public).

I could be mistaken though =) Sorry if I did not phrase my thoughts correctly, I sometimes still have trouble with the English language. Please correct me if you find any mistakes, also, please share your opinion on what I said =)