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NOBODY UNDERSTANDS!

Speaking of love, one problem that recurs more and more frequently these days, in books and plays and movies, is the inability of people to communicate with the people they love: husbands and wives who can't communicate, children who can't communicate with their parents, and so on. And the characters in these books and plays and so on, and in real life, I might add, spend hours bemoaning the fact that they can't communicate. I feel that if a person can't communicate, the very least he can do is to shut up.
Tom Lehrer, That Was The Year That Was

Angst can create compelling drama and Character Development when done well; virtually all acclaimed works use it to a degree and the appeal of The Woobie is based around it.

But like all other good things, angst can be overdone or clumsily handled. Wangst, a portmanteau of "whiny" (or "wanker," depending on who you ask) and "angst," is essentially angst gone wrong. The intended Woobie becomes a pathetically whiny character who insists on moping (often loudly and repeatedly) about a tragic past or event instead of, you know, trying to deal with it and stop being depressed all the time. Especially if said "trauma" doesn't come across as nearly tragic as the character thinks it is, making his lamentations seem way out of proportion.

However, though Wangst is most frequently associated with characters whining over petty "tragedies", it's not necessarily the scale of the tragedy that the character is reacting to that's the problem, but the way it's handled. Events that would be genuinely devastating in Real Life can become melodramatic Wangst if the sufferer's self-loathing drags on for too long or is used as a plot device so often that it becomes irritating. Likewise, events that the average person wouldn't worry over can be a great way to show a character's unique fears and weaknesses, and maybe even make it clear that he really is blowing it out of proportion and deserves to be mocked. It all boils down to quality and personal tolerance level; what is grating and unrealistic to one viewer can be genuinely heart-rending for another.

There are some points that can be agreed on, though: Giving more than one character sources of angst and then picking one of them to be dramatic about his suffering (bonus points if you choose a character who has less reason for self-pity than others) will not make the audience sympathize with him over the other characters who handle their own troubles with more restraint and dignity. It only makes him look like a self-obsessed jerk. Also, True Art Is Angsty only goes so far — miserable and conflicted characters who are poorly-written are not automatically more interesting than happy, well-adjusted, and well-written ones. Angst/Wangst is not a crutch for drama and Character Development; good characters are defined by factors other than their Dark And Troubled Pasts.

Wangst is a favorite of Emo Teens, Sympathetic Sues, and characters Cursed With Awesome. See also Emo, Narm, Angst Dissonance. Compare Deus Angst Machina, which is about having too many sources of angst for Willing Suspension Of Disbelief rather than too much response to sources of angst. Contrast Angst What Angst.

Note: This page is not here so that you can complain about characters or shows you don't like. Try and use the Rule Of Cautious Editing Judgment. If you can't think of at least one solid example of wangsty behavior in canon, then chances are it's not something that should be on this page. The subjective nature of the trope does not mean that the entries should be vague.

Important note: the mere fact that a character is sad does not itself indicate Wangst. There are some scenarios even in fiction where it is appropriate for the characters to feel sad and depressed and act accordingly; after all, if the same thing was happening to you in Real Life, chances are you'd be pretty upset as well. Wangst is a problem not because the characters are sad, but because their sadness is poorly-written or inappropriately drawn-out and exaggerated. When including an example, try and establish why the example belongs here. Note also that some Wangst is also played deliberately, usually for humour - plenty of creators see the comic potential in ridiculing the over-angsty.

Examples

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