There are many types of ‘brainrot’ at Notre Dame. I will explore a few of these. First, there is the most severe form that is found in joking individuals who ironically or unironically use TikTok slang terms and phrases. For instance, one might say, “What the sigma! Skibidi toilet sigma male Andrew Tate looksmaxxing mewing rizzing Livvy Dunne gyatt.” The translation into English is “Oh my goodness! I just saw a human head sticking out of a toilet in a bathroom, and in the same timeframe, a traditionally masculine, attractive man with a sharpened jawline, whose behavior and characteristics mirror those of Andrew Tate, the media personality, businessman and former professional kickboxer, successfully courted Livvy Dunne, a social media influencer and LSU gymnast, whose physical attractiveness is enhanced by her rump.” At one point, the English language was once used to write beautiful Shakespearean sonnets, but now it is incumbent upon me to translate social media slang terms so lowbrow and nonsensical that the greater population designates these terms with the mark of acute cognitive degeneration. And if you do not believe me that every single one of these terms is real, search them up for yourself.
Second, there is a milder form of brainrot, in my estimation. Last Saturday was an uncharacteristically chilly and windy first game day. In years past, the first game day was marked by sweltering heat, body odor, and black-out drunkenness. This year, it was cold. There was hardly any sweat to stink up the place and everyone sobered up before halftime, which really makes you wonder how much your alcohol tolerance is attributed to your alleged skill rather than the environment. Nevertheless, there is brain rot as manifested through clothing. You certainly would have seen many variations of “The Shirt.” You could have seen crop tops, long-sleeves, tank tops, cold shoulders tops, tube tops and even dresses, expertly and creatively fashioned from the original piece. Despite the frigid weather, many people elected to shred their clothing in order to have a more attractive outfit and deliberately be uncomfortable and also to expose as much skin as legally permissible. I commend the craftsmanship of refashioning the shirt, and probably by many metrics, it is a more attractive version of the shirt However, I seriously question the motivations and influences that caused one to cut up his or her clothes. This person actively forsook their common sense and human survival instinct for fleeting validation both from their peers as well as those on the internet. It’s not up to me to decide whether or not a cold, a few Instagram likes and a piece of tattered cloth that can’t be worn again is worth it, but I seriously question your cognitive ability if you choose thus.
Third, I identify another subtler variant of brainrot in a specific demographic. You might find these people in class sporting nondescript t-shirts depicting a US national park with 5.5” Lululemon or Birddogs shorts and ragged white sneakers about six feet below a backwards hat. You would probably find these people dressing surprisingly nicer out at a bar or tailgate, donning a striped, polyester polo shirt. Whatever the outfit, the main thing to consider is the topics and manner of conversation. Common topics include and are probably limited to talking about girls, politics and sports. It must be noted that the technical knowledge of their professional field as well as excessive alcohol and nicotine consumption has diminished their cognitive ability such that they often fail to remember that women and minorities are human beings too.
Despite the extremeness of my examples, there is a common thread uniting the three archetypes: many people at Notre Dame actively decide not to use their creativity, talents and blessings derived from being unique individuals made in the image and likeness of God. There is something that only you can contribute to this world that no one else can — it is, in fact, your obligation as a living human being to effect this contribution. We are not here just to get by, to sneak an education away from this institution and not make a big splash in the world. I see too that people’s ambition and competency, quite frankly, peaks in high school — they just did enough to get into Notre Dame and will ride the wave to mediocrity henceforth.
To refer back to our examples, the first person using TikTok brainrot chooses to engage in behaviors that practically makes him or her stupid. This person does not engage in behaviors or consume media that lifts his or her mind to higher principles. This person chooses to immerse themselves in a platform that begets and promotes uniformity — an infinite cycle of imitating TikTok trend ad nauseam. The second person chooses to use his or her gift of human beauty as a vehicle of vice to increase pride. The trading of something so little and shallow for something so infinite and beautiful should startle all of us. Finally, the third person simply lacks respect for oneself and projects that lack onto others. The person’s intellectual skill is used for self-gain rather than in service of a greater purpose. This archetype is more common and pervasive than we think.
Whichever type of brain rot you might find yourself engaging in, there is still hope for us all. Make the necessary changes today. We can always do more. Live better. Live more fulfilling and dedicated lives.
Jonah Tran is a junior at Notre Dame studying finance and classics. He prides himself on sarcasm and never surrendering. You can file complaints to Jonah by email at jtran5@nd.edu.
