I recently made an observation that “cheesy and sympathetic” never go out of style – with the implied punch line being that “cheesy” can never go OUT of style because by definition it is never IN style.
The folks at Merriam-Webster tell me that the non-dairy definition of “cheesy” is “shabby, cheap.” SO something that we call “cheesy” (again in a non-dietary subject) tends to be “low budget” and probably “low quality” – e.g. Plan 9 From Outer Space is a “cheesy movie” – SO cheesy that it is funny.
The path cheesy took to mean “cheap” is almost certainly American slang:
cheesy (adj.) Meaning “cheap, inferior” is attested from 1896, perhaps originally U.S. student slang, along with cheese (n.) “an ignorant, stupid person.”
I’m also told at the time across the pond:
In late 19c. British slang, cheesy was “fine, showy” (1858), probably from cheese
That quote about the United States and the United Kingdom being “separated by a common language” comes to mind …
“England and America are two countries separated by the same language!”
George Bernard Shaw
Not always bad …
It should be pointed out that cheesy doesn’t automatically mean “bad.” Guilty pleasures often have a high “cheesy” content. Why are they “guilty pleasures?” – probably because they are “cheap and underappreciated”
From a “food” point of view – adding cheese/cheese like substance can transform “blah” to “gimme more” — think of the difference between plain nachos vs nachos AND cheese dip.
An “artistic work” that strives for simplicity AND entertainment will almost certainly get labelled “cheesy.” e.g. for MOST of U.S. history “romance novels” have been the best selling genre – and of course “rom-coms” as a movie genre are so popular they have channels dedicated to them – and BOTH are extremely cheesy by design.
Just how MUCH “cheesy” is acceptable can change – but just because it is cheesy doesn’t mean it is worthless.
e.g. Pick up a copy of an Edgar Rice Burroughs adventure story or a Max Brand western and “Cheesy but fun” will be an accurate description 99% of the time.
Giving the audience what they want is always a path to short term profit – but almost never long term respect. e.g. “Max Brand” was a pen name for Frederick Faust to begin with – and is still a brand name today – pick up a Max Brand paper back and the title of the individual book is probably smaller on the cover than “Max Brand”
Edgar Rice Burroughs created Tarzan – and the history of THAT iconic (and cheesy) character is beyond the scope of this article …
Beautiful simplicity
If “simple and entertaining” is done at a high level it might get the “elegant” label.
At first glance elegance and cheesy are polar opposites – but the difference is in the implementation and individual interpretation.
The first Star Wars (A New Hope) comes to mind – I loved the movie as an adventure story when I was 10 years old. By the time I was 20 it had become a little cheesy. When I re-watched it at 40 I notice the “meat and potatoes” under the cheese.
The story being “implemented” in Star Wars has deep mythological roots – what changed was MY individual interpretation of the movie …
While I’m at it Casablanca (1942) AND Citizen Kane (1941) routinely make the list of “great American movies” and both have a certain amount of “cheesy” in them –
AND don’t get me started on The Great Gatsby – (either the 1925 novel OR the movie interpretations) – The 1974 Robert Redford and Mia Farrow version captures the “feel” of the novel – which is VERY “cheesy and sympathetic”
yes, The Great Gatsby is a great novel. – Baz Luhrmann might deserve the “king of cheesy” title, but you know – different subject …
So yes “classics” can be cheesy. BUT in general noticeable “cheesy-ness” is going to be interpreted as profiteering and maybe exploitation. i.e. a little cheesy goes a long way and TOO much ruins the product.
When I was a child …
1 Corinthians 13:11(“When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.”) drives home the point that “cheesy youthful moral reasoning” is always bad.
Youthful arrogance and prejudice should give way to more mature (and humble) attitudes developed by experience and education. It is a lot easier to “know everything” when your world is relatively small and experience is limited.
In THOSE cases the “cheesy” probably gets consumed with the assumption that it is the norm. Which was kinda the point of Bob Dylan’s “My Back Pages” – but that is a different subject …
Ah, but I was so much older then I’m younger than that now
Bob Dylan
That youthful ignorance of the “cheesy” should naturally dissipate with time and exposure to the NOT “cheesy” — BUT just because you enjoyed something when you were “a child” doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy it when you “grow up.”
That enjoyment should be re-framed and not glorified by nostalgia – i.e. “I remember loving this when I was smaller” vs “Things today will never be as good as my memory of ‘whatever’”
A little learning is a dangerous thing ;
Alexander Pope
Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring :
There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain,
And drinking largely sobers us again.
Nostalgia isn’t evil …
There has been “research” done that pinpoints the age at which “musical tastes” get locked in.
As I remember the study – they came to the conclusion that the music we are exposed to under the age of 10 tends to have a watershed type effect – i.e. it can have a positive OR a negative impact on later musical preferences.
My guess is that “parental relationships” become a lurking variable — if music reminds someone of their parents THAT is what they are reacting to, not the music.
e.g. “I LOVE that song my mother/father used to play that all the time” vs “I hate that song my mother/father used to play it ALL the time”
Childhood memories aside – the human brain keeps developing into our late 20s – and it is around that time when “band names start sounding the same” and “music just isn’t as good as it used to be” to the average person.
If someone works in the “music industry” in some form – then their tastes may not calcify as much as non-music industry folks. However that is also going to be an exercise in the “expert mind” vs the “amateur mind” – which is also a different subject.
SO if someone hears a song AND it reminds them of being in the 7th grade (13ish) – MY guess is that the song will FEEL “cheesy” to them simply because they are being reminded of that time in their life.
“Beautiful” by Christina Aguilera came up a “cheesy and sympathetic” – yes, it is one of those songs that has a very high perceived “cheesy” content level – but get past the “cheese” and it is about self acceptance and independence. Scratch the surface and the message is “think for yourself” and/or be a critical thinking individual
Ms Aguilera was 19ish when she recorded/released the song in 2002 – and I’m gonna guess that at 44ish in 2025 SHE probably has a different view of “Beautiful” – but my point is that there is “meat” under the “cheesy”
umm, but for me I still hear “talented 19 year old” because I’m that guy in the back of the room yelling “Play Freebird!” 😉
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