$onion got shilled by the quant @nofudfam and @beni_franklin came up with the following thesis i really like. Several of my boys are very high on it(!)
“How can you give up when the onion never did?”
We have all seen the intense and insane comeback from the onion in the video, but there is more to it
At face value it’s absurd. Why an onion?
But that’s exactly why it works.
The onion becomes a symbol of relentless endurance:
It gets peeled layer by layer → still exists
It makes you cry → keeps going
It gets chopped, sliced, cooked, burned → still shows up in meals
No glow-up. No applause. No redemption arc.
Just quiet persistence.
So the meme is basically saying:
If an onion can survive constant suffering and still fulfill its purpose… what’s your excuse?
It’s dark humor + motivation + irony rolled into one sentence.
Why it went viral (the real psychology)
1. Anti-hustle motivation
People are tired of:
“Grind harder”
“Wake up at 5am”
Fake inspirational quotes
This meme flips that. It motivates you using something pathetic and mundane — an onion roling. Not a perfectly round object like the others, an onion with its flaws and imperfections, but it still manages to win.
That contrast makes it hit harder.
2. Relatable suffering
Modern life feels like:
Constant pressure
Being “peeled” by work, bills, expectations, algorithms
The onion isn’t winning.
It’s just not quitting.
That resonates deeply right now.
3. Irony as coping
Gen-Z / internet culture doesn’t like sincere motivation. It prefers self-awareness and irony
This meme says:
“Yeah life sucks… but look, even THIS thing keeps going.”
And somehow that’s comforting.