Are you quick to react strongly and provoke others, leading them to be confused and upset? Overreacting in every circumstance could wreak havoc with your relationships, creating tension in them and leading them down an unpleasant path.
The Angry Karen is a powerful force. She’s an entitled white woman who takes everything bad about soccer moms and amplifies it exponentially.
She fits into an established tradition, including Becky and the “white tears” movement.
1. Listen to the Other Person
If you want to stop being Karen, begin by actively listening to those with whom you have disagreements and empathizing with their viewpoints in order to find an amicable compromise solution that benefits all involved parties.
Keep an open mind and refuse to jump to conclusions in order to be more understanding. Anger often conceals other feelings, so it is crucial that you identify any hidden emotions behind it – it may even be fear or embarrassment driving it! For instance, worrying what other people think of your behavior might spark defensive anger that escalates further if someone makes an insulting comment against it – potentially turning you against that person entirely!
Some women struggle to express their emotions due to a fear that society will judge them negatively, so instead opting not to share or express them at all – something which could prove harmful to both themselves and those they’re communicating with in any given situation. But silence could actually be deadly.
By intentionally altering both language and body language, you can alter how you respond to someone. If you tend to yell at coworkers or children when something goes wrong, try speaking more calmly with less sarcasm; this will allow you to stay in control of your emotions and avoid saying things you may later regret.
Avoid phrases such as “never” and “always” when discussing situations; these types of terms tend to escalate discussions and alienate those you’re speaking with.
Finally, try to identify what triggers your anger so you can address them accordingly. For instance, if traffic jams make you angry often, increasing physical exercise might help lower stress levels and lessen anger when driving. Or if a heated meeting or argument escalates into something too heated to manageable for you to handle on its own, take time out for some exercise such as walking to clear your mind before returning later to resume speaking or acting out in anger.
2. Don’t Make Assumptions
No one can truly know what someone else is thinking or feeling; every individual experiences life differently and has unique reactions to what has occurred in their life. Making assumptions about another’s thoughts or feelings will likely cause both you and them a great deal of discomfort, leading to miscommunication due to various interpretations of what was said.
Karen has become a widely used meme to demean an entitled white woman who displays excessive anger when her privilege is challenged. Although Karen may have first emerged online, its significance has grown rapidly as public health and racial justice issues create unprecedented change and unpredictability in American society. Like popular memes and hashtags including #whitetears, Karen symbolizes white supremacy’s unyielding power over society at large.
Karen is an evolving form of the older slang term for white fragility and naivety, Becky. Cultural critic Damon Young points out that while Becky attempts to convince herself and others that her whiteness doesn’t matter, Karen instead attempts to hide behind vitriol to cover up her privilege status.
An angry Karen may seem like someone trying to conceal their privilege by acting “overly sensitive and dramatic.” A more realistic assessment, however, would be that her outbursts are simply attempts to defend her entitlement and racial privilege in an ever-evolving world.
No matter your opinion of Karen as a sexist stereotype, she remains an integral component of American racial culture and global whiteness. Just as epithets for women like bossy, ditzy and nasty have become derogatory insults against them, Karen serves to cover everyday situational racisms that occur within middle-class white female entitlement contexts – its use heightened now due to coronavirus outbreak.
3. Ask Questions
At times, when people express their emotions they lack enough foresight to analyse the deeper meaning behind what they’re saying or doing. Asking questions allows people to gain perspective and think critically, helping to rationalise their behaviour more logically while discovering its source.
Anger Karen has quickly become a popular meme due to her symbolism of white privilege and sexist entitlement; thus making her an easy target for viral criticism at a time when public health crises and issues of race/social justice have created an intense, volatile political atmosphere in America.
Karen first emerged as a term to refer to middle-aged white women wearing an asymmetrical bob demanding that her coronavirus symptoms weren’t being taken care of urgently enough, yet over time has expanded into any white female who feels entitled to act beyond their circumstances. Thanks to subreddit r/F—YouKaren and Urban Dictionary definition featuring Gosselin, its use in internet vernacular has only cemented further; now used to deride any white woman who behaves like an overdramatising drama queen.
Many of those being memed as Karens may not necessarily be acting in ways that are particularly offensive or dangerous; rather they are simply abusing their privilege and creating anxiety among those without as many resources as them. Unfortunately, when this word is used this way, its nuance becomes lost and becomes synonymous with all forms of online shaming directed against women, including specifically against sexist, entitled, white women.
Memes directed at people being memed as Karens can often be read as an expression of their anger about an issue that is both racially charged or politically contentious. For instance, when people share Covid-19 conspiracy theories on social media platforms it has often been perceived as Karen-like behavior as it disproportionately affects minority communities. Furthermore, some Americans who were asked to wear masks in public have been seen refusing aggressively covering their faces when asked.
4. Relax
You can change your emotional reaction if you are an angry Karen by prioritizing self-care. Whether it be work related frustrations or that your spouse doesn’t do their share of dishes, taking time for yourself can help regulate emotions and reduce overreacting.
As much as it’s normal to feel angry from time to time, if your anger is interfering with relationships or career success it could be a telltale sign that something needs to change in your behavior. Overreacting refers to an initial emotional reaction which is too intense for the situation at hand and leads to greater harm than good.
Overreacting is often caused by minor events. If you find yourself reacting negatively and making unnecessary decisions due to small things, such as becoming angry over nothing at all then this could be indicative of being sensitive and taking everything personally. Other triggers include stress, anxiety and lack of sleep – it is therefore vital that you learn to control your emotions so as to not act inappropriately and react in such ways in future.
One popular meme depicts a middle-aged white woman with an “I want to speak to the manager” haircut as the villainous Karen. Although its source remains hazy, Matt Schimkowitz, editor-in-chief at Know Your Meme says it has come to symbolize white women who abuse their privilege and commit harmful actions such as calling the police on innocent Black people who go about their day-to-day business.
Although it’s essential to recognize the racial implications of the Angry Karen archetype, it’s also vitally important to investigate why such behaviors emerge. According to experts consulted by Yahoo Life, such tendencies often stem from various combinations of factors; including individualistic thinking and sense of entitlement.
Redirecting your emotional responses can be challenging, but starting is easy if you know your triggers and know how to defuse negative emotions in healthy and productive ways. One method for doing this is practicing mindful meditation – this involves focusing on breathing while relaxing your body to reduce stress and anxiety in life. You could also try listening to soothing music or spending time with animals that relaxes you as other forms of calming activities may also work well.
