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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The folks at Merriam-Webster tell me that the non-dairy definition of “cheesy”<\/a> 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<\/a> is a “cheesy movie” – SO cheesy that it is funny.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The path cheesy took to mean “cheap” is almost certainly American slang:<\/p>\n\n\n\n cheesy (adj.) Meaning “cheap, inferior” is attested from 1896, perhaps originally U.S. student slang, along with cheese (n.) “an ignorant, stupid person.” <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n I’m also told at the time across the pond: <\/p>\n\n\n\n In late 19c. British slang, cheesy was “fine, showy” (1858), probably from cheese <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n That quote about the United States and the United Kingdom being “separated by a common language” comes to mind …<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEngland and America are two countries separated by the same language!\u201d<\/p>George Bernard Shaw<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n 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” <\/p>\n\n\n\n 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Just how MUCH “cheesy” is acceptable can change – but just because it is cheesy doesn’t mean it is worthless. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 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. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 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”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Edgar Rice Burroughs created Tarzan – and the history of THAT iconic (and cheesy) character is beyond the scope of this article …<\/p>\n\n\n\n If “simple and entertaining” is done at a high level it might get the “elegant”<\/a> label. <\/p>\n\n\n\n At first glance elegance and cheesy are polar opposites – but the difference is in the implementation and individual interpretation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The story being “implemented” in Star Wars has deep mythological roots – what changed was MY individual interpretation of the movie …<\/p>\n\n\n\n While I’m at it Casablanca (1942)<\/a> AND Citizen Kane (1941)<\/a> routinely make the list of “great American movies” and both have a certain amount of “cheesy” in them – yes, The Great Gatsby is a great novel. – Baz Luhrmann might deserve the “king of cheesy” title, but you know – different subject …<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 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. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 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 …<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ah, but I was so much older then I\u2019m younger than that now<\/p>Bob Dylan<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n 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'”<\/p>\n\n\n\n A little learning is a dangerous thing ; There has been “research” done that pinpoints the age at which “musical tastes” get locked in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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”<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
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Not always bad …<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Beautiful simplicity<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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”<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhen I was a child …<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring :
There shallow draughts intoxicate the brain,
And drinking largely sobers us again.<\/p>Alexander Pope<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\nNostalgia isn’t evil …<\/h2>\n\n\n\n