By The Angry Noodle
I came across an interesting trend on TikTok recently. You know how there’s a whole bunch of different aesthetics on TikTok like cottagecore, nostalgiacore, and fairycore? Well, there’s a new and fascinating aesthetic cropping up on TikTok, and it’s the most “core” -core aesthetic of them all: #corecore.
Let’s begin.
TW: ableism, misogyny, talk of sexual harassment and assault, implications of pedophilia
What is #CoreCore?
The #corecore TikTok trend uses a collection of clips to evoke emotion and/or make a social or political point. It’s kinda like a clip montage paired with some real vibey music, creating an artsy form of social commentary about everything from misogyny to capitalism to racism to climate change.
Honestly, just look up something you think about often, or something you want to understand better, and either way these TikToks will take you on a journey.
Juxtaposition is also used to great effect here. Rapidfire images of fleas trapped in a jar juxtaposed with the academia-to-workforce path we all follow. It’s corny as hell in some ways, and can even lack context or sprinkle dogwhistles into its messaging in others (check out YouTuber Ro Ramdin’s great video on TikTok’s depression pipeline, citing Bell Hooks’ The Will to Change: Men, Masculinity, and Love). But overall, #corecore TikToks have the power to deliver a message in a quick yet poignant and powerful way.
@dullmangos
The above TikTok was actually the first one with the #corecore aesthetic that I came across. It’s a collection of videos that demonstrate the dehumanization and objectification of women.
It starts with a woman proudly showing off the rape whistle she got for Christmas, followed by a rapid-fire montage of TikToks discussing how different demographics of women are fetishized by incels.
For those who don’t know what an incel is, it stands for “involuntary celibate,” and it’s a man who believes himself incapable of attracting women. As a result, incels often harbor a hatred or resentment for women, referring to them as things like “roasties,” “femoids,” and “Stacys.”
Another video features a young woman who noticed she made double the amount of tips after putting her hair into pigtails, the implication being that men were more attracted to her when she looked young enough to pass as a child.
The one after shows us comments made on the TikToks of minors, guessing as to the color of their genitalia. In one case, the commenter guesses on a TikTok featuring a five-year-old.
The TikTok after is a “joke” about the “husband stitch,” extra stitches added after childbirth to tighten the vagina and make sex more “enjoyable” to the husband. Sometimes men will privately request or even pay to have this procedure done without their wife’s knowledge. The pain is long-lasting and excruciating, often making sex permanently painful for the woman. But hey, anything for a man’s pleasure, right?
@sexywaterboy
Here’s one about the patriarchal stigma that men are not allowed to express emotions or be vulnerable; that it doesn’t conform to our narrow definition of what encompasses “masculinity,” and that men as a result often feel that they can’t be open and emotionally vulnerable with others.
I have always disliked this growing debate and roast culture, where one must prove that they can be completely objective at all times. In order to “win,” you have to be confident, loud, and utterly dispassionate to prove that you are more objective and facts-based than everyone else. Things like voice cracks, tearing up, or even just looking upset in social settings, are viewed as signs of weakness, and therefore, naivete and ignorance. As though compassion and emotion are things to be ashamed of.
The fact is, we as human beings do not exist solely to be objective. A man is not weak for being vulnerable. On the contrary, it takes courage to be authentic in the face of relentless societal pressures and gender norms.
Anyway, smash the patriarchy.
@thevoicesofman Fleas in a jar. #motivation #mentalhealth #corecore #nichecore #thematrix #entrepreneur
I alluded to this last one earlier on in this post, the rapid-fire images of fleas in a jar juxtaposed with the school-to-workforce pipeline. It felt important to include the full thing, as it increasingly starts to feel like an inevitable destiny for most of us, and we’re the somewhat lucky ones.
The TikTok starts with a voiceover of a scientist discussing fleas placed inside a jar with a lid placed on top. After enough time, their behavior is set for life, and even when the jar is opened, they continue to jump only as high as the lid would have let them before. This alone is a fascinating metaphor for the limitations placed upon us, the many ways in which we could thrive creatively but don’t because the monotony and expectations of the everyday prevent any exploration beyond what’s expected of us.
What makes this #corecore TikTok particularly striking, however, is the juxtaposition of kids in a classroom, followed by students graduating right as the scientist says, “left undisturbed for 12 years,” and finally, the fleas forever set behavior “for the rest of their lives,” followed by a rapid-fire collection of GIFs on the misery of the daily grind and commute, day after day, the same thing, the same monotonous, soul-crushing routine that we are doomed never to leap beyond because our behavior has been set for the rest of our lives.
These TikToks are super short, but they convey a lot in the twenty seconds to a minute they last.
What do you think of #corecore? Are there any #corecore TikToks you’ve come across? It’s currently a bit of a niche trend, so do you hope it will someday pick up some steam?
Zappit 
Tennyson E. Stead 