Is Passion Dead?

Recently, I’ve been rewatching some of David Corenswet’s press tour (my guilty pleasure is anything with him in it….. sue me), but in watching his long talks, specifically in his interviews with Rick Glassman and Brittany Broski, I realized that he is so obviously passionate about his work. About art and the humanities. And of course, I know that it’s much easier for society to digest passion when it comes from attractive people, but nonetheless, it’s so nice to see unbridled passion about the work that you do in a world of jaded nonchalance that’s continually perpetrated through things like dating culture, friendships, etc. But it caused me to think more deeply about social norms in today’s society. People find passion awkward. Humiliating, even. Passion is punished within our social realm– one “cringe-worthy” action and you are posted for millions to see, whether that be self-expression, accidentally saying the wrong thing in conversation, not reading the room, etc. The worst sin you can commit in the eyes of your peers is being “embarrassing.”

How did we get to this point as a society, though? Have we always been so quick to ridicule people for being interested in having hobbies?

It started with the pandemic. Being in the pandemic for most of my teenage years, I have experienced firsthand how awkward social connections and conversations tend to be. People don’t want to talk about their hobbies (or even worse, don’t have any they can list off the top of their head), and don’t have anything they can talk about with extreme enthusiasm. Most of us were unexposed to people for 1-2 years, with the only social connection happening over phone or text, and with a significant amount of time being spent on apps like TikTok, where millions of accounts were created around the idea of resharing “cringe” TikToks. With most teenagers frequently absorbing this content, they also assume the behavior of making fun of people who are passionate. We have become cruel and unassuming in the face of people being passionate. It’s the status quo to be cool and nonchalant and never let others know that you care. 

But I think the fact that knowing that there are still passionate people out there that don’t necessarily water down their passions to satiate the public need for apathy is something that is incredibly important.

I personally have a lot of interests that can be deemed “nerdy” and are things that are not the most conventional. This leads me to often feel disconnected from my peers. In my own experiences, I always feel this invisible distance between me and people who like the same things- they often experience it in a way where they absorb the media in the most casual way, whereas I envelop myself in my interests entirely. I’ll read emerging news about it, it will be on all of my feeds on social media, I will buy merchandise, etc. I would claim to be very passionate in my interests, but next to my apathetic peers, it feels more isolating at times. 

This isn’t meant to be me getting on a soapbox and professing that I, a freshly 20-year-old girl finding her place in the world, am the epitome of passion and fiery energy, nor am I a “tortured poet” in any sense of the world. But I do hope to confess and relate to someone out there about the identifiable trend of nonchalance in today’s society. 

Don’t get me wrong, there are bubbly people everywhere that make a very conscious, viable effort to get to know people and really talk to them. However, I argue that true, passionate Gen Z-ers are somewhat few and far between (passionate and true are subjective in nature, of course — but I digress to make my point in this article). An obsession with coming off as nonchalant, calm, cool, and collected has become ingrained in the majority of Gen Z. In a world where our first instinct is to pull out a camera and videotape anything that doesn’t align with the most popular behavior at that point in time is essentially second nature. I am left wondering, where did all the passionate people scurry off to? 

I would argue that this culture of embarrassment has killed passion, or at the very least, been a potential cause behind a cultural shift towards overall conformity. When people are crucified for indulging in their own personal interests, it teaches others that being themselves or expressing themselves is inherently wrong. 

When passion is dead, what differentiates us from one another? Are we all just doomed to be the same type of person, following the same trends with nothing that truly distinguishes us from one another?

Obviously, there is a way. But that involves a lot of work from an audience who has been conditioned to put judgment first and foremost, before allowing themselves to be really, truly passionate about something out of fear of appearing embarrassing to those around them. Sue me for being optimistic, but I think that if we truly kill the culture of embarrassment, stop shaming others for self-expression, and become more conscious of the kindness we are so clearly capable of, we can be more passionate. About love, life, friendships, and everything in between. 

• college
• passion
• relationships