In certain corners of the internet, you can hear a mantra repeated ad nauseum by struggling posters: "the horrors are endless, but I stay silly" (sometimes stylized, "the horrors are never-ending, yet I remain silly"). In fact, usage of the phrase seems to have exploded in memes recently. Where'd it come from? Let's break it down.

What Is "The Horrors Are Endless, But I Stay Silly?"

Before we break down the phrase, we must first ask ourselves, what does it mean to be "silly?" You may think you know, but the very nature of being "silly" has become its own meme in recent months.

The idea of being too silly began becoming an attractive meme towards the end of the 2010s, as social media posters idolized being a whimsical, joyous little goofball. This expressed itself in memes like me in my silly little bed and silly cats. To be capital-S "Silly" meant to embrace the chaotic nature of life and translate it into happiness.

This crystallized in a pair of tweets from Maia Arson Crimew, a hacker who leaked America's No-Fly List in the beginning of 2023. As the controversy surrounding the hack grew, Crimew tweeted, "Congress is investigating now. But I stay silly :3." This influential quote made its way to Tumblr user junoinfernal, who became the first person to post "The horrors are endless, but we stay silly."

How Is The Phrase Used In Memes?

The phrase spread outside of Tumblr thanks to some popular image macros. In most cases, one will find the quote used as a caption on pictures of cute animals.

As the meme spread in this way, it began to expand toward pop culture characters from horror media as a way to undercut the creepy auras of their characters.

The meme evokes an image of a person clinging onto their sense of "silliness" for dear life as they are bombarded by the various ills of modern life, which may be a sort of down way of putting this meme's appeal, but hey, we stay silly.

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For more information, check out the Know Your Meme entry on "the horrors are endless, but I stay silly."