What is EMO?

[Ghillie in the Mist]

I know what it is to me... I want to see what everyone else thinks is emo...

Anyone?

[EvilMan_89]

i guess it's being sad and dark?

[Garxena]

Emo is cutting yourself and planning suicide.

Goth is being dark and depressing.

That's how I distinguish the two.

[Ghillie in the Mist]

Do emo's really have a higher suicide rate than non-emo's?

[SӓiḺØr N.Ø.I.$.E]

Emo (in my school) means emotional (often times there bi polar,with having very random mood swings) not to mention there very very loud when there togther -_-'', they often are very touchy with there friends, often are very depressed over silly reasons (belive me i know...alot of my friends are emo so i know what im talking about) they often times cut themselvs say very inaporpreate things, make rude comments

need i go on?

the point is emo is not a bad things if ur not too much of the above (note: everyone is like that sometime, but the emo's at my school are like that 24/7!!! UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

oh and btw...if any emos read this...totaly take offence because u know its true, dont try and pretend it isnt
and! another thing...i hate it when emos where(this is towards girls) very REVELING OUTFITS!


NO
ONE
LIKES
IT!!

thank you

[libregkd]

I hate it when emos where(this is towards girls) very REVELING OUTFITS!


NO
ONE
LIKES
IT!!
If said girl is hot, then I do.


Emo is nothing but an overused stereotype nowadays. Most kids people consider emo are more along the lines of having teenage angst. Todays 'emo' kids seemed to be classified by anyone who seems depressed or wear dark clothing. I personally never use the term in any serious discussion...seeing how its meaning has been massacred.

Do emo's really have a higher suicide rate than non-emo's?Not at all actually...

[Ghillie in the Mist]

Not at all actually...

I did'nt think so... but I wanted to know.

[Crumpet]

Emo is just a short word for emotional... but to me it's when people act like Goths, but are whingy... (no offence) they may or may not cut themselves, do drugs or smoke... Drinking I can see them doing though

Do emo's really have a higher suicide rate than non-emo's?

actually no ... I found out a few days ago that our family friends son had hung himself... it was quite a shock.. though I have never met him

[11jones2]

well i say it means your emo
and people at my school say it means you cut your self but my teacher said thie ri sa diffirent word for that

[Gerdneek]

People think Emos are always cutting themelves. I have proof that says they can be really happy. There is a girl who is emo and she is really happy. If she failed a test, she would be like. "I failed, yes!" Every morning she says high to everyone when she enters. Then someone tells her to shut up. And it keeps going on.

[Crumpet]

People think Emos are always cutting themelves. I have proof that says they can be really happy. There is a girl who is emo and she is really happy. If she failed a test, she would be like. "I failed, yes!" Every morning she says high to everyone when she enters. Then someone tells her to shut up. And it keeps going on.

i would like to meet this girl and hug her.... lol... she seems really friendly, this raises more questions about what emo is

[White_Rook]

A simple sub-cultural fad among many teenagers, often associated with the music genre from where the term came from. Sadly, the term EMO in music really means nothing since any genre of music is capable of having emotion in it.

[Pure Sorrow]

well its supposed to mean Emotional, but now adays its more of a fashion and music statement than anything else. it used to be more about expressing yourself through pain and sorrow but then it became over popular and now 9 out of 10 people that think they are emo are just wanna be's

[Hissora]

In serious terms:
A stereotype made up from the style of rock music emotive. Emotive music was always like average rock, lyrics being a bit suicidal and sometime depressing. Somehow, people started to put into a trend, almost branching off from the classic goth. The stereotype got bigger and bigger, eventually breaking what really "emo" was.

If you cut your wrists for attention nowadays, you're considered 'cool' and 'emo'. You can tell when this is going on because the person will slash in random cut on there arms, while someone SUICIDAL cuts straight down the wrist. =/

I think 'emo' is just totally bogus and immature.

[8730]

What really pisses me off is when people say that emo's cut themselves.

People with mental problems cut themselves, or some stupid people who think it is "cool" to cut. Being emo has nothing to do with it. Really, having people checking your wrists every so often in school is really annoying ._.

I see emo as meaning emotional. Whether it is positive and/or negative emotions.

[Darkwatch]

Emo is an arrogant notion individuals place on each other in order to feel either more or less accepted. It's an abuse of the word "emotional," and takes it to stereotypical levels. Essentially anyone who is sad all the time is immediately referred to as "emo," or so I notice. It is the result. Nothing more.

[Repliku]

Emo was meant as a music genre type that has emotional aggressive expression to it. It was a break off from gothic and alternative.

However, it has since grown to be used to describe a certain type of people that are seen as over-emotional in the negative emotions and seem down on life, pessimistic and tend to not like themselves much or very little else. It's become a stereotype phrase to use on anyone who is negative to things, wears darker colors and gaudy attire, and who is extreme in not wanting to fit in with others but others like themselves. Stereotypes are dangerous things though so I -try- to not cater to this one, though some people can make it difficult to not label them as they seem to fight to be a stereotype instead. I will say though that I never judge them just on appearance because anyone is more than just what they wear or have tattooed or pierced.

There are some who people would classify as emos who are cutters, but it's not always the case. Also, many people labeled as emos are thought that they will commit suicide more often than others. I don't really think so, though those I see as spree killers often are manic depressed when news comes out about them and I'd freely call them emo, despite the lack of 'proper attire' because of what the word means to me. I don't think those who call themselves emo though are more likely to commit suicide. They are just angry at the world or things going on about them and some generally have problems that are real, despite the fact that others seem to be from well to do families and backgrounds. There are also some people that are just really depressed and/or angry at everything and feel choked down by a lot and put themselves in bad situations because of their outlook and people automatically label them as emo, which may not be right and instead the person just needs a friend or something positive to happen that they take notice of.

I tend to use the word to mostly describe someone who is very depressed and complains about stuff all of the time when it isn't that bad, or they dug a hole for themselves and won't even try to get out of it but make sure to tell everyone how miserable they are. I'm sure everyone has met those sorts of people where you say a problem that's serious and someone cuts you off and goes into how miserable they are, but the problem is just not even as serious, like this one time I said I had gotten wounded and had to go to the hospital and get stitches, and next the person interrupts me as I'm explaining the wound was infected to say that his cat scratched him and he's annoyed and hates it. I do know where the word stems from and to some degree like some 'emo' music because who isn't mad now and then or upset? But I have to confess I use the word itself more to convey someone who is always chronically depressed and seems to be selfish and focused on only him/herself because there just isn't another easy word to do so.

[Alpha Sonix]

Like Bunterx, it also pisses me off.

IMO a Emo is someone who distances themselves from other because they want attention. Cutting yourself is not emo, it a mentality problem.

[Lady Beatrice]

There's a diffrence between these:

GOTHIC
DEPRESSED
EMO

Gothic is dark.

Depressed is extremely sad.

Emo to me is when you take those two things, mash them up, and add cutting.

But I honestly dont like stereotypes like that and I won't lable you if you cut yourself, I'll ask you what's wrong. I think most people that tell others they cut themselves are only crying out for attention and asking for help in their own way.

[JorrellVsRoxas]

*To the tune of the "fun song" from Spongebob Square pants*
E is for emotional, ruins everybody's day.
M is for miserable people!
O is for on the dark side, cus we have some fresh cookies.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pK4bLMd0avU

that is all...

[Aura]

Many people can have a different meaning to it like cutting themselves,believe that their life is just a waste.But I think it could mean that people that are just emotional.I do say that emo people cut themsleves yeah pretty much a lot of them do that.But there is another question to this,what's the difference between depression and emo?

Depression is a mental health disorder that can affect the way you eat and sleep, the way you feel about yourself, and the way you think about things. A depressive disorder is more than a passing mood. It is not a sign of personal weakness, and it cannot be willed or wished away.

A depressive disorder involves the body, mood, and thoughts. People who are depressed cannot "snap out of it" and get better. Without treatment, symptoms can last for months or years.

Now emo is something that people can almost never turn back.Even though I've never been emo or depressed.For many people,and for me too,believe emo is when people start dressing in all black clothes(thats a little more of goth but some emos do that)they begin to think that their life is just a lie or that its just a waste.Also emo could mean like people cutting themselves.

I don't know that much about emo but I know a little more about depression.

[Xephos]

You really want to know what an EMO is?

Here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pK4bLMd0avU

[Luna Lovegood]

Some people have good reasons to be sad/depressed, but over-react and cut themselves and write atrocious attempts at poetry.
But, there are some people who I call wemos (wannabe-emos). They show off their emo-ness and declare how their life sucks, when really they are the ones making it so sucky.

Another view:
http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=YILwqtlfD5U&feature=inbox

[White_Rook]

Now emo is something that people can almost never turn back.

It's a sub-cultural fad. Eventually people will grow up or find something else to occupy their pop-culture fix.

[JorrellVsRoxas]

I posted that already xD

COOL EMO KID: doesnt care what ppl think, likes a good band whether they are on mtv or not, and won't stop listening to some band just cuz everyone suddenly 'discovered' them. they do nothing to make ppl feel bad for them, and want no ones sympathy. they give everything a chance before deeming it cool or uncool. and if they want to kill themselves, they do it. they dont shop regularly at hot topic, but dont' completely disregard it. if there's something they want to buy, they go for it, and dont deny they bought it there. most of what they wear is from hand me downs, a garbage, a thrift shop, or was found. they dress how they want, and never deliberately try to piss ppl off or 'rebel'. if they do something rebellious, it is not just to be rebellious, it is because they want to/believe in doing it. they respect people who dont want to put drugs in their body, but some COOL EMO KIDS do drugs because they feel like it

ANNOYING EMO KID: those kids who regularly max out daddy's credit card at hot topic and tell everyone how depressed they are and that they cut their arms up every night wanting to die (ok...where are the scars?). they only listen to 'underground' bands adn immediately stop when someone they think is popular or preppy starts to listen to them, or they see them on mtv (which they claim never to watch, but they still do). they intentionally do stupid and rebellious things trying to make authority figures mad, thinking it's cool. these people are attention-craving, tasteless, abnoxious emo kids. anything popular is completely disregarded to them. they also tell ppl that they think drugs are sooooooooooo cool, but are scared to do them, but do them anyway because they think it'll make them cool

COOL EMO KID: that guy wearing some vintage tight tee and dirtied up black chuck taylors who is genuinely sincere and tells everyone what he thinks (tho never rudely unless he is already pissed at them)

[Ghillie in the Mist]

Wow... I didnt expect this to go over 1 page long... Also, I initially posted this when thinking of the character Kadaj.

However, I did read the last three pages, and the most ineresting was Repliku...

Emo was meant as a music genre type that has emotional aggressive expression to it. It was a break off from gothic and alternative.

However, it has since grown to be used to describe a certain type of people that are seen as over-emotional in the negative emotions and seem down on life, pessimistic and tend to not like themselves much or very little else. It's become a stereotype phrase to use on anyone who is negative to things, wears darker colors and gaudy attire, and who is extreme in not wanting to fit in with others but others like themselves. Stereotypes are dangerous things though so I -try- to not cater to this one, though some people can make it difficult to not label them as they seem to fight to be a stereotype instead. I will say though that I never judge them just on appearance because anyone is more than just what they wear or have tattooed or pierced.

There are some who people would classify as emos who are cutters, but it's not always the case. Also, many people labeled as emos are thought that they will commit suicide more often than others. I don't really think so, though those I see as spree killers often are manic depressed when news comes out about them and I'd freely call them emo, despite the lack of 'proper attire' because of what the word means to me. I don't think those who call themselves emo though are more likely to commit suicide. They are just angry at the world or things going on about them and some generally have problems that are real, despite the fact that others seem to be from well to do families and backgrounds. There are also some people that are just really depressed and/or angry at everything and feel choked down by a lot and put themselves in bad situations because of their outlook and people automatically label them as emo, which may not be right and instead the person just needs a friend or something positive to happen that they take notice of.

I tend to use the word to mostly describe someone who is very depressed and complains about stuff all of the time when it isn't that bad, or they dug a hole for themselves and won't even try to get out of it but make sure to tell everyone how miserable they are. I'm sure everyone has met those sorts of people where you say a problem that's serious and someone cuts you off and goes into how miserable they are, but the problem is just not even as serious, like this one time I said I had gotten wounded and had to go to the hospital and get stitches, and next the person interrupts me as I'm explaining the wound was infected to say that his cat scratched him and he's annoyed and hates it. I do know where the word stems from and to some degree like some 'emo' music because who isn't mad now and then or upset? But I have to confess I use the word itself more to convey someone who is always chronically depressed and seems to be selfish and focused on only him/herself because there just isn't another easy word to do so.So... basically its Kadaj listnening to My Chemical Romance...

It's a sub-cultural fad. Eventually people will grow up or find something else to occupy their pop-culture fix.

I guess it would depend on why they are emo...

I mean, look, glam rock was a fad, and there are still glam rockers, same with punk rock, and goths... so there will always be some.

And yes... I do know goths and glam rockers who are out of high school...

[{Vena_Sera}_ The Anti{Saint}]

emo to me is really being emotional and having different types of thoughts and having different attitudes and moods against people. for one i think that the ones who cut their selves are just people who try to belive that cutting their selves is the only way to get rid of their sorrow, and pain.

what i think emo is is that you are different from others and have stronger emotions that others. mainly they are thought to just cut their self. and that i think is just wanting to be emo to try to say cutting their self can relive them from their sorrow and pain.

[White_Rook]

And yes... I do know goths and glam rockers who are out of high school...

Well we don't all grow up after high school *right away*.

[Ghillie in the Mist]

It's a sub-cultural fad. Eventually people will grow up or find something else to occupy their pop-culture fix.

Well we don't all grow up after high school.

Contradiction?

I did not expect this of you...

[White_Rook]

Contradiction?

I did not expect this of you...

I jumped the wording on that one. I meant that we don't all grow up right away.

Fad also function within a continuum. It's not necessarily that they die out and vanish, especially if they're particularly strong. They often phase out and become less focal compared to the mainstream or dominant fad.

[Spitfire]

As was stated in the brief view I took above, emo is a subculture of gothic, which is in turn a subculture of punk, which is basically the coolest people eva. Not really. First we see how "emo" has replaced the ideal of punk even though they are two completely different things but thats a side story. I can see no real reason to have the label of emo, its normally referred to as emotional which means they have to many feelings in my opinion which makes them whine about everything. Most people will go to their defense saying that it is because they have gone through alot of hard things in their lives blah blah blah. I speak from personal views here when I say EMO KIDS HAVE NOTHING TO WHINE ABOUT. I have yet to meet an "emo" kid who has lived through something bad, they are normally upper middle class people who feel sorry for themselves and want attention, or think that they have it hard off. Most of which think they are no good and worthless and assume they are better off dead, when in fact they are too ignorant to realize they are just being losers about their life and don't want to take responsibility for it, just like people with depression.

[Xendran]

Depends on how you want to see it, and also the person. it came form the music, and got bigger.
I have a few questions
I have tried to kill myself before. form this statement do you instantly think im emo? if so, your stereotyping
If you think im emo, im usually happy (not all the time though) so put that along with what you think emo is. im not even sure what to think about emo anymore, and i tend to stay away from the word.

[*TwilightNight*]

Unless I use it for joking/sarcasm or for RPing, you won't see me mentioning it at all, I don't take the word that seriously. My main view is that it's when a person is down, constantly sad for no reason, having some hissy fits, etc. I don't think it really has nothing to do with cutting yourself. That's suicidal, which is a mental situation. Emo is a short version of emotional, which in itself, constitute to emotions, thus, being happy, sad, scared, depressed, etc. Though the meaning has been long ago scrapped.

When a friend of mine is like that, I just say "Stop being emo, have a Jesse McCartney poster", or just tell him to stop being so emo, since everyone is familiar with the word, and is a cause for a laugh in which the said buddy retorts with a playful "Shut the hell up.". Yet, I never called anyone in a serious manner, "emo". Don't find it necessary.

[Ghillie in the Mist]

I'm probably going to regret this one... but...

Unless I use it for joking/sarcasm or for RPing, you won't see me mentioning it at all, I don't take the word that seriously. My main view is that it's when a person is down, constantly sad for no reason, having some hissy fits, etc.
But there are some people who are emo all the time. Not just fleeting emotions.
I don't think it really has nothing to do with cutting yourself. That's suicidal, which is a mental situation.
Not all cutters are suicidal. Some cut themselves for the "high" of the endorphine release caused by the pain. Nothing to do with suicide.
Emo is a short version of emotional, which in itself, constitute to emotions, thus, being happy, sad, scared, depressed, etc. Though the meaning has been long ago scrapped.
Correct, but the word "emo," now is associated with a part of culture. Where people are called emo for being associated with a particular group. Yes... the meaning is so scrapped, that I started this thread to refind it.
When a friend of mine is like that, I just say "Stop being emo, have a Jesse McCartney poster", or just tell him to stop being so emo, since everyone is familiar with the word, and is a cause for a laugh in which the said buddy retorts with a playful "Shut the hell up.". Yet, I never called anyone in a serious manner, "emo". Don't find it necessary.
That is pretty funny... :)

[Spitfire]

Please explain how cutting your wrist is a release of endorphin, quite frankly I find it to be a waste of blood. People cut themselves as a cheap way to make it seem like they really have a problem, while yes they are now faced with the problem of now cutting themselves they have no real reason to, most kids who claim to the fame of "emo" have nothing wrong with them, mostly cause they are only 15 years old and just want attention cause they don't get enough. If they really felt bad about their life then they would either suck it up and try to make it better and/or finally kill themselves and stop wasting peoples time with nonsenseical BS.

[Ghillie in the Mist]

Any time we experience pain, be it an physical, or emotional pain endorphines are released.

Some people hurt themselves intentionally because they realize that that releases a lot of endorphines.

Ok... maybe some people are emo because they think its cool, and they truly do have nothing wrong with them.

But I do find the later part of your post rather judgmental, you don't know who everyone is or what thier circumstances are.

[Shadow]

Emo is a man-made term, that doesn't exist.

My take on it.

[Laurence_Fox]

But there are some people who are emo all the time. Not just fleeting emotions.

Not all cutters are suicidal. Some cut themselves for the "high" of the endorphine release caused by the pain. Nothing to do with suicide.

Correct, but the word "emo," now is associated with a part of culture. Where people are called emo for being associated with a particular group. Yes... the meaning is so scrapped, that I started this thread to refind it.



But then there is likely something else that is making them feel this way. It's not just that they're 'emo'. It's more likely that they're clinically depressed. But then again, only professional psychologists and psychiatrists can properly diagnose such things as depression. A family doctor usually has a fair idea of what the problem is and will usually suggest seeing one of the above for an appointment.

Not all cutters are suicidal. I agree with this statement. Someone could be a cutter and just be doing it to get attention or just because they have a fetish for pain. In fact, most people who are suicidal usually go some other way then wrist slitting as it is a slow way to die. Usually a gunshot or a drug overdose is the preferred method depending on gender. I'd likely get it backwards if I tried to recall at this hour.

Emo has lost all meaning in society as far as I am concerned. In my opinion, I never considered it to have any meaning outside of the music genre of which I have little care for. It has become almost a subculture like the punk or the goth subculture. (And never call a goth an emo, chances are you'll get your ass kicked. Trust me I've seen it happen.)

There's my two cents.

[Lefolane]

Emo is.. umm to be often depressed and get frustrated easily, a person who like thinking over in negative way and become extremely anxious..

[Spitfire]

Any time we experience pain, be it an physical, or emotional pain endorphines are released.
Some people hurt themselves intentionally because they realize that that releases a lot of endorphines.
Ok... maybe some people are emo because they think its cool, and they truly do have nothing wrong with them.
But I do find the later part of your post rather judgmental, you don't know who everyone is or what thier circumstances are.

I am very judgemental in the way I look at 'emo' kids, but when you look at the demographic of it, that is what it is a bunch of middle class kids who don't get enough attention. And seeing as punk is the founding basis of the 'emo' movement I find that it is really the exact opposite of what it stood for, same goes with goth. Its trying to be different for the sake of being different. When punk started out it was in protest of a overly controlling government as they saw, as well as the beginning of the skin head movement also. But in the years that gothic and emo have been around they have not gained anything, quite frankly Maddox had the right idea of it being an ambigous label for people to put on themselves, because their is no real definition of gothic therefore there is no real definition of emo.

[Ghillie in the Mist]

Actually... punk started out because a bunch of kids wanted to party... nothing to do with politics initially. Look at the early Sex Pistols, and The Clash.

I do not see any connection between punk and emo. Early emo sounded nothing like any type of punk I heard... unless you call Angels and Airwaves punk.

Also, some may be emo for attention, but saying they all are just isnt right. It would be like saying all forumers are 350 lb kids in thier twenties who will never get a job and live in thier parents basement. Its not right, or fair.

Larence: Maybe they are depressed.

Fetish for pain is a poor way of putting it in my opinion. Some cutters cut for psychological or severe emotional trauma... didn't you ever watch the show "Intervention" when they had the cutter? They gave some statistics on cutter, something like 75% of cutters are female, of them 90% were sexually abused. (Dont quote me on the statistics, its been a year or so since I seen that episode.) So yeah... a fetish for pain is just wrong in my opinion.

Yeah... I heard about that too...

[Spitfire]

Still these early punk kids had something out there to stand for, they lived with a struggle they were bottom of the barrel east L.A. kids and Underground sewer rats. Until said time with the Clash and Sex Pistols which is true alot of bigger stuff didn't start until around those days.

I see it as this as well do others I have discussed this with that most people can agree that Punk led to Gothic and Gothic led to Emo. Goth and Emo have the same basic values that the label is built upon the thing is the way they show themselves and the way they go about stating what they are (I.E. how they dress).

I say most things out of generalization, no matter what you will hear it no one, no where can say different about generalization. Most people on this forum will say that all rap is about the degradation of women and always on drugs, and while the majority of it may be not all of it is, I listen to some pretty damn realist rap that talks about some real ****, as well as the drug and sex stuff. And while people on here have made it a point to defend I promise that people on here will still say all rap is bad as stated. So the way it has been shown demographicly that most kids who claim the label of 'emo' really have nothing wrong with them at all, while most don't some do and I acknowledge that but at this point you are splitting hairs on what I am saying.

Cause let me ask when I speak generally here and I say what problems can a little 14 year old possibly go through that makes them want to die or say they do. Ain't nothing in their life been bad as it will get. I want to know what you think these 'emo' kids go through to make these feeling happen? I ask this a real question.

[khsuperfan]

the whole emo thing is very funny. i have emo/goth friends, so i say there cool people, who wish to live in the dark past. usually have emotional problems and stuff....but yeah.....thats my 2 cents

[Laurence_Fox]

Larence: Maybe they are depressed.

Fetish for pain is a poor way of putting it in my opinion. Some cutters cut for psychological or severe emotional trauma... didn't you ever watch the show "Intervention" when they had the cutter? They gave some statistics on cutter, something like 75% of cutters are female, of them 90% were sexually abused. (Dont quote me on the statistics, its been a year or so since I seen that episode.) So yeah... a fetish for pain is just wrong in my opinion.

Yeah... I heard about that too...

And that's what I said in the first line of my post. I've known a cutter who cut herself because she believed she was complete and total ****. She thought she wasn't fit to live which was a result of her mother verbally abusing her since she was the age of 5. I've known another who cut himself for most of the same reasoning after he came out to his parents that he was gay. They freaked on him and basically disowned him as their son. They are otherwise great people but they've both been diagnosed as Clinically Depressed.

I don't watch shows on A&E since Paranormal State disappointed me. But I only mentioned 'fetish for pain' in one reply of my post which you seemed to have picked up on. So here's the rest of it to jog your memory.

In fact, most people who are suicidal usually go some other way then wrist slitting as it is a slow way to die. Usually a gunshot or a drug overdose is the preferred method depending on gender. I'd likely get it backwards if I tried to recall at this hour.

[Mythos]

agree with khsuperfan ^__^