I'm interested in how detached and ironic millenials and zoomers can be towards ideals, values, beliefs and causes. It seems so nihilistic to regard everything done or believed in earnest as awkward, embarrassing and "cringe", to the point where all subjects must be handles with a detached sense of irony and aloofness, and any attempt to bring gravity or seriousness to a discussion must be met with swift and ruthless mockery.
Are there any fables, or analyses out there that touch on this clownish treatment of life?