What is an Emo?

1. a red stuffed animal from Sesame Street
2. a flightless bird in the same family as an ostrich 
3. an abbreviation of the word 'emotional' that describes a teen culture characterized by a specific fashion, music and a depressed mood. 

 Elmo is the muppet from Sesame Street and an emu is the bird from Australia. An emo describes a teenager you may have seen or even know. Emos typically have dyed dark hair with bangs/fringe that covers one eye- this shows that they do not want to see the world or have the world see them. The clothing is typically dark and may be several sizes too small. Dark eyeliner is expected. Belts are studded and bangles on the wrist on worn "to give the illusion that you self harm".
The music  they favor is typically loud and depressing.
The most significant marker of an emo is the attitude. Emo- wannabees are advised "Don't have any problems? Make them up! Complain about how your comfortable suburban life is making you feel disconnected from the real world and disillusioned with life. Keep a bleak outlook on life and soon you will be writing tonnes of emo poetry!"
Why do I care what an emo is? Well, Dr Conger and I often discuss the rise in mental health cases we have seen over the years. We worry about the cause and wonder about the stresses placed on kids to attain high grades in school and excel in after school activities. We work on finding the most effective way to help these kids. What I find hard to accept is a teen culture that purposefully gravitates toward darkness and embraces it.

While emos explore the gloomy side of  emotions,they claim they do not condone negative behavior. Behavior like cutting.
Cutting is a form of self harm. This is not necessarily slitting one's wrist to attempt suicide. It is more a a purposeful slicing of the skin to cause bleeding and can be done on the arms, legs or even stomach. Some use this a mechanism to cope with pain and others to express rage, sorrow, longing or helplessness. Cutters often hide their scars from their family and the public. The emo culture tends to attract cutters.
In 18th century England, the term ennui was borrowed from the French to describe  listlessness or dissatisfaction. It was somewhat 'stylish' to suffer from this ailment. I image an English lord draped over a settee -bored and pouting. Other than the aristocracy of England, I don't know of any other time in history when melancholy was expressed with pride.

Boredom is different from depression however. I worry about these teens and hope that you will look at them in a different light. For some kids this is not just a fashion statement. This is far deeper and I try not to image what this says about us and our society.

For more information on emos- see one of their websites....www.luv-emo.com

Comments

Name *
Email (For verification & Replies)
Code   
ChronoComments by Joomla Professional Solutions

Submit Comment