History Main / UnableToCry

* ''Literature/{{Siren}}'': Vanessa loved her sister Justine, but after Justine's death, she finds herself unable to shed a tear.

* The entirety of Organisation XIII in ''Franchise/KingdomHearts''. Since they have no hearts, they're physically incapable of feeling emotion.

** At the end of the series, Tobias morphs human so that he can cry [[spoiler: so that Rachel can see him just before she dies.]] Hawks, of course, can't.

* Tobias of ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'' spent ''so'' much time [[ShapeshifterModeLock trapped]] in the form of a red-tailed hawk that even when he returns to human form, his predatory mindset prevents him from crying. This saves his life on one occasion--[[spoiler:he's just found out who his father really was, but he needs to pretend that he doesn't believe what he's been told.]]

->''Thoughts that do often lie too deep for tears.''

Something terrible has happened, but a character finds themself unable to shed tears. (Or at least, says they can't). In the classic scenario, a bereaved hero will angst (or {{Wangst}}) over their inability to cry for a dead loved one, lamenting that they must be a terrible person, dried up and dead inside, a monster! They never are; they're usually just suffering an undiagnosed HeroicBSOD, or are working up to an UnstoppableRage and can't let themselves break down, or [[TryingNotToCry swore]] they wouldn't let their enemies see them cry and now have an emotional block about it. Occasionally they cried so much over one traumatic event (or a series of them) in their life that they seem to have no tears left for anything else. And sometimes, they literally ''can't'' cry no matter how sad they might truly be because they lack tear ducts, whether naturally or due to FacialHorror.

* ''Manga/AttackOnTitan'' has Eren Yeager in the Final Season, [[spoiler:where Sasha died from being shot by Gabi. And after heard what her last word is, all he can do is laugh. Change to flashback from season 1, where Sasha said when they win and conquer land, they can farm animals and have meat. Ends of flashback, Eren grit his teeth unable to shed tears losing his friend. Technically, it wasn't hIs fault he can't cry. Because it's Reiner's fault for showing too many painful hells to him.]]
* ''Manga/BlackButler'': in an inverted example, [[DevilInDisguise Sebastian's]] [[AFormYouAreComfortableWith human form]] has perfectly functional tear ducts, but he lacks any sort of emotion that would cause him to shed tears. Naturally, he's shocked the first time something irritates them enough to make tears roll down his face.

** Despite feeling sad and lonely, Lucy cannot initially cry when she loses her father. She speculates if it was a result of her father often treating her horribly, until they made up somewhat. Then when she finds out that he has been sending her birthday presents the last seven years, paid her rent so she didn't lose her home and actually loved her all along, she breaks down crying.

** [[TheStoic Sousuke]] remarks on his inability to cry when [[spoiler:Kurz supposedly dies]], though he wonders if he could had Kaname been there. [[spoiler:In the final novel when, faced with certain death, he sees a video from his former classmates asking him to come back to school, Sousuke finally breaks down sobbing that he doesn't want to die.]]

** In ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEEDDestiny'' Kira, in a stark contrast to how he used to be, has gone from tear prone as he was in SEED to not crying at all. Even in situations where the battle-hardened Athrun cries he doesn't shed a tear. The reason for such a severe change are never really touched upon but the implications of it being a combination of general battle weariness and PTSD are there.

* Shion from ''Manga/HellsParadiseJigokuraku'' is physically unable to cry due to his damaged eyes, and berates himself for his inability to mourn for his dead friend, Tenza. All he can do instead is to seek revenge against the monster who killed Tenza.

* In ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'', Shinji, albeit outright stating that he is sad, finds himself unable to cry after [[spoiler:Rei saves his life via HeroicSacrifice. In fact, she isn't mourned by anyone at all, and is quickly replaced by an identical-looking clone. So Shinji's inability to cry might just be foreshadowing]].
* In ''Manga/OnePiece'', despite how much he wants to when [[spoiler:Rebecca tearfully announces him her will to win the tournament for the Mera Mera no Mi]], the Thunder Soldier in the Dressrosa arc is ''literally'' unable to cry, due to being a LivingToy. [[spoiler:Thankfully, his toy status is later fixed, revealing him as a human named Kyros. When the whole thing was over, he [[InelegantBlubbering made up for all those tearless years in one go]].]]

* Following the death of [[spoiler:Cosmo]], and the subsequent failure to revive [[spoiler:her]], in the series finale of ''Anime/SonicX'', Sonic was left not only unable to cry, but unable to react properly. Despite regular complaints stating that he was "soooo mean", he was obviously mourning.

* Surprisingly averted in the story record based on [[Creator/{{Atari}} Atari's]] game ''VideoGame/YarsRevenge''. Yars are giant mutant houseflies. When a young Yar warrior in the story goes off to battle, his mother's huge multifaceted eyes have tears in them.

* ''ComicBook/Robin1993'': When Tim has to attend the funerals of his father, his girlfriend and a school friend who'd died in his arms after he failed to save her all in the same week he finds that by the end of the week, for the last funeral he just can't cry anymore no matter how disrespectful he feels that is.

* Professor X in ''ComicBook/UltimateXMen'' was unable to cry at his son Proteus' funeral and he berated himself for it. Of course, the fact that Proteus was a mass-murderer who killed over a million people worldwide and was going to kill him might have something to do with that.

* In Creator/GahanWilson's ''ComicStrip/{{Nuts}}'', the Kid wonders why he can't cry when his favorite uncle dies, until he imagines his dog dying instead and then weeps his heart out.

* In ''Fanfic/LimitlessPotential'', Roll finds herself unable to cry when X explains to her that she's been rebuilt a century in the future, and that everyone she knew, including Mega Man and Dr. Light, are long dead, which only distresses her even more. Justified given that when she was given her new body, Dr. Fujiwara saw no reason to give her the capacity to cry.

* ''Film/Conspiracy2001'': Offscreen, Dr. Kritzinger tells Reinhard Heydrich a story about an old friend who had an abusive father but a doting mother. The man was unable to cry at his mother's funeral, but was strangely broken down in tears and sobbing uncontrollably at his father's funeral. It was because his father's hatred defined the man's life more than his mother's love ever did, rendering him an empty shell who had lost his purpose when the object of his hatred was gone. This ties into a warning that Kritzinger is trying to give Heydrich about his anti-Semitism.

* In ''Film/TheHoliday'', Amanda Woods can't cry. It's part of the trumped-up reason her boyfriend says he cheated on her during the DefenestrateAndBerate scene at the beginning; that he's freaked out by her emotionlessness. But eventually ThePowerOfLove is upon her, and she finds herself crying because she has to leave her new love interest. This produces a delighted reaction to her, and leads straight into a RaceForYourLove scene.
* Referenced in ''Film/MysticRiver'' where Sean Penn's character sobs "My own little daughter and I can't even cry for her!" "Jimmy, you're crying now!"

* In ''Literature/TheBellJar'' by Sylvia Plath, Plath's AuthorAvatar Esther realises she has never cried for her father and breaks down sobbing at his graveside.

* In ''Literature/LordOfEmperors'', the widowed, hunted and revenge-seeking Empress must be convinced to "allow herself to grieve" by a physician who is sheltering her from the new Emperor's guards. "We must bend before we break" is a big philosophy for said physician, and is borne out several times in the ending.

* Albert Camus' ''Literature/TheStranger'': one of the points used against the main character in his trial is the fact that he didn't cry at his mother's funeral. He argues that it is hard to cry for a woman who lives a long happy life and then dies peacefully.

* In ''Series/HomeImprovement'', Tim Taylor's boss, Mr. Binford, who was like a second father to him, dies, and he is unable to cry for him or show grief the way the other characters do. After a bit of thinking (and a visit to his neighbor Wilson), he realizes that he just doesn't show grief the same way as everyone else. Notably doesn't end with a scene with him breaking down in tears. The episode said that Tim cried at the actual funeral, but didn't show it on-screen. Part of the story was that he didn't want Brad to think crying isn't "manly" because everyone shows grief differently.

* Part of the plot in the SoapOpera ''Yo Amo a Paquita Gallego''. The titular character is unable to cry, as she never had done that, not even at her birth. But, as one character points "those who are unable to cry are unable to sincerely laugh neither", so the plot has a real delight in doing all kind of very awful things, even to ludicrous levels, [[BreakTheCutie just to see if she ever breaks]]. When Paquita finally cries, near the end of the soap, it serves as the signal that the universe can stop throwing shit on her ASAP.

* In ''VideoGame/Persona4'', this is the main problem with Naoki Konishi, the Hanged Man Social Link. He finds himself being unable to properly mourn his sister's death, which makes him seem cold in the eyes of others. In the end of his story arc, he's able to properly mourn and move on.

* In ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'', ChosenOne Colette laments her inability to cry at one point, as a part of [[spoiler:the angel transformation process which is sealing away her soul piece by piece.]] She does get better by the end, but at the time...

* In the ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' episode "[[Recap/SpongeBobSquarePantsS4E3HaveYouSeenThisSnail Have You Seen This Snail?]]", Spongebob's pet snail Gary has run away. Near the end, Patrick tries to get Spongebob to let it out some more, after days of failed searches, but he laments that he can't cry anymore and that he's out of tears. It's subverted a second later when Patrick finds some balsa wood laying around, prompting Spongebob to turn on the OcularGushers again because Gary really loved balsa wood.

* In ''Series/HomeImprovement'', Tim Taylor's boss, Mr. Binford, who was like a second father to him, dies, and he is unable to cry for him or show grief the way the other characters do. After a bit of thinking (and a visit to his neighbor Wilson), he realizes that he just doesn't show grief the same way as everyone else. Notably doesn't end with a scene with him breaking down in tears. The episode said that Tim cried at the actual funeral, but didn't show it on-screen. Part of the story was that he didn't want Brad to think crying isn't "manly" because everyone shows grief differently.
** This later appears again when Jill's father dies and Randy can only respond by making [[GallowsHumor death jokes]]. Tim tells him it's okay to react that way, but to be considerate of others and only make the jokes around those who will be okay with them (namely ''him'').
* ''Series/ArrestedDevelopment''
** Michael Bluth never cried as part of a RunningGag that GOB kept calling him a heartless robot. It wasn't a matter of ''couldn't cry'' as it was he didn't feel that he needed to. He did shed a few tears in the finale, though, which elicited opposite reactions from those around him; GOB, especially, who'd made a big deal about his failure to cry, found the sight repulsive and unmanly, and it's what convinced his mother to sell out the company to Stan Sitwell.
** His sister Lindsay finds herself unable to cry on command like she used to, though she does finally manage it when she believes her father is dead.
---> '''Lindsay:''' I used to think of Dad dying; that used to work. I once tried thinking of Mom dying, but I just ended up smiling.
* This happens to Mariah Cirrus, rescued from a sleeper pod in an abandoned ship in the ''Series/BabylonFive'' episode "[[Recap/BabylonFiveS02E05TheLongDark The Long Dark]]", due to the cryogenic process drying out her tear ducts.
* Part of the plot in the SoapOpera ''Yo Amo a Paquita Gallego''. The titular character is unable to cry, as she never had done that, not even at her birth. But, as one character points "those who are unable to cry are unable to sincerely laugh neither", so the plot has a real delight in doing all kind of very awful things, even to ludicrous levels, [[BreakTheCutie just to see if she ever breaks]]. When Paquita finally cries, near the end of the soap, is the signal that the universe can stop throwing shit on her ASAP.

* Ana Lucia's inability to cry (at least until Day 48) is mentioned in ''Series/{{Lost}}''. Notable in that we don't see her cry during any of her traumatic flashbacks either, and when she finally ''does'' breakdown, it's likely that she was finally letting out the grief of the past few months of her life.
* Played extremely {{Narm}}ishly on the sixth season finale of ''Series/GreysAnatomy''--while caring for the critically injured Dr. Percy (and having almost been shot herself), a flustered Dr. Bailey ''actually says'' "Where is that water coming from?" and has to be gently told that she is crying by Music/MandyMoore's character. Also one of the patients was clinically depressed but never cried because he cried out all his tears when he was a newborn baby
* ''Series/DegrassiTheNextGeneration'': Liberty, right after [[spoiler: JT's death]], though she eventually does cry.
* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'': Data, being an [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots android]], has this problem, despite the [[TheWoobie multiple tragedies]] that inform his life. It's patently obvious to everyone but him (including the audience) that he can ''feel'', however. He loses this limitation after getting Soong's [[PersonalityChip emotion chip]]. The [[ExpandedUniverse novel]] ''Immortal Coil'' has everything he didn't express all drop on him at once, to the point of what would be clinical depression in a human.
-->'''Data:''' You know that I cannot grieve for you, sir.\\
'''Soong:''' You will. In your own way.
* In ''Series/AmericasNextTopModel,'' a contestant named Tiffany was eliminated during Cycle 4. She took the elimination in stride and said that she has had such a hard life and cried so much, getting eliminated from a reality show was pretty small by comparison. This rather famously sent Tyra into a complete rage.
* PlayedForLaughs with [[AlphaBitch Brooke Alvarez]] of the [[Website/TheOnion Onion News Network]], who claims to have had her tear ducts cauterized.

* Edgar Lee Master's [[https://www.bartleby.com/84/186.html "Charles Webster"]]
-->''Till you stood, too full for tears, by the cot,''

* Sapphire from ''VideoGame/{{Disgaea 3|AbsenceOfJustice}}'' can't cry even if she wants to. [[spoiler: At least, [[TearsOfJoy not out of sadness]].]]

* ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaOrderOfEcclesia'':
** [[spoiler:After Shanoa is forced to kill Albus and his spirit warns her about Barlowe's treachery, she laments the fact that she can't cry for him due to [[EmotionlessGirl having lost her emotions]].]]
** At the end of the game, [[spoiler:Albus' last request before he leaves for the afterlife in Shanoa's place is to see Shanoa smile. Having regained her emotions at this point, she does with tears streaming down her cheeks]].
* The normally emotionless Lita from ''VideoGame/BrutalLegend'' states that she'd rather have scorpions crawl down her cheeks than tears [[spoiler: before her emotional breakdown by her brother's deathbed. Eddie responds by saying that would make an awesome album cover.]]
* In ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'', ChosenOne Colette laments her inability to cry at one point, as a part of [[spoiler:the angel transformation process which is sealing away her soul piece by piece.]] She does get better by the end, but at the time...
* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006'' has Princess Elise who can't cry... but only because she was trained not to, after her father sealed an unspeakable evil into her, that can only escape if she cries.
* The entirety of Organisation XIII in ''Franchise/KingdomHearts''. Since they have no hearts, they're physically incapable of feeling emotion .
* In ''VideoGame/Persona4'', This is the main problem with Naoki Konishi, the Hanged Man Social Link. He finds himself being unable to properly mourn his sister's death, which makes him seem cold in the eyes of others. In the end of his story arc, he's able to properly mourn and move on.
* ''VideoGame/LufiaIIRiseOfTheSinistrals''

* In ''VideoGame/TheWitcher3WildHunt'' an optional line of dialogue has Geralt say "I can't cry. Don't know how." after [[spoiler:Vesemir dies.]] Whether he physically can't due to his mutations or finds it extremely difficult due to his upbringing/jadedness is up to the player's interpretation.

* What happens to Alan Aramaki in the Last Season of ''VisualNovel/RoseGunsDays''. [[spoiler:He realizes that his girlfriend Meixue, who was shot by a sniper − who is his best friend Keith to make things worse −, is no longer responding because she already died from her bleeding.]] Yet no tears run. He can only sport a BrokenSmile instead.
* In ''VisualNovel/DanganronpaV3KillingHarmony'', [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots Ultimate Robot]] [=K1-B0=] laments that he can't cry in the wake of [[spoiler: Miu Iruma's murder, since they'd grown attached to each other in the past couple of days]].

* Played straight as the undiagnosed BSOD in ''Manga/{{Parasyte}}'': Shinichi is horrified at finding himself [[ItGetsEasier becoming more callous]] as the carnage marches on, and especially at being unable to show emotion when [[spoiler:Kana is killed. His biggest hangup is being unable to cry at the funeral.]]
* In ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'', Shinji, albeit outright stating that he is sad, finds himself unable to cry after [[spoiler: Rei saves his life via HeroicSacrifice. In fact, she isn't mourned by anyone at all, and is quickly replaced by an identical-looking clone. So Shinji's inability to cry might just be foreshadowing.]]
* In ''Manga/{{Monster}}'', [[StepfordSmiler Wolfgang Grimmer]] regrets his inability to cry or otherwise respond to emotional situations, such as his son's death, owing to his upbringing [[spoiler:at Kinderheim 511]]. This is {{subverted|Trope}} when Grimmer bursts into tears when trying to comfort a traumatized child after [[spoiler:rescuing the child from suicide]]. Later, when [[spoiler:dying from a gunshot wound]], he is finally able to cry for his son.
* ''Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar'': A young girl named Asuka can't cry for her dead father because she thinks that, if she does, he'll never rest. Kenshiro's response is to hold her, shedding TenderTears and stating that he'll cry in her place.
* Following the death of [[spoiler:Cosmo]], and the subsequent failure to revive [[spoiler:her]], in the series finale of ''Anime/SonicX'', Sonic was left not only unable to cry, but unable to react properly. Despite regular complaints stating that he was "soooo mean", he was obviously mourning.
* ''Manga/FairyTail''
** Erza {{ZigZag|gedTrope}}s this; she cannot cry in her right eye, even when it was healed of damage from when she was a slave. She does, eventually, cry in her right eye at the end of the Tower of Heaven arc. She claims that it's because she already cried half of her tears out.
** Despite feeling sad and lonely, Lucy cannot initially cry when she loses her father. She speculates if it was a result of her father often treating her horribly, until they made up somewhat. Then when she finds out that he has been sending her birthday presents the last seven years, paid her rent so she didn't lose her home and actually loved her all along, she breaks down crying.

** This also applies to [[spoiler:Kaname and Tessa shortly afterwards, when they find themselves unable to cry over Sousuke's apparent death; Kaname thinks to herself that it seems to be because it's so hard to believe that he'd actually be dead. She's right, of course.]]
* In ''[[VisualNovel/{{Clannad}} Clannad After Story]]'', Tomoya tells Ushio about how, when you become an adult, you often can't cry even when you want to. Not long after, though, [[spoiler:[[AvertedTrope he discovers he's still got plenty of tears left]], even though if anyone should be numb to sadness, [[TraumaCongaLine it's him]]]].

* {{Subverted|Trope}} in the manga of ''Manga/MegaManX'', in which the fact that [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots X]] ''can'' cry is what shocks Zero.

-->''"Even toys have things they want to protect. But tears won't fall from these tin eyes..."''
* Referenced in ''Anime/CodeGeass'' twice; the first time is when [[spoiler:Shirley Fennette's]] father has died, and when she's putting on a brave face her friends tell her not to, and ask if she's cried yet. They're reassured when she replies that she's cried a lot. The second time is after [[spoiler:the same unfortunate Shirley]] has died, and one of her estranged friends is dealing with her own grief, and is reassured by a coworker that as long as she can cry, she'll be OK. Both cases clearly work on the belief that being UnableToCry is a sign that something is ''seriously'', perhaps irremediably, wrong, while being able to express your grief is much healthier.
* In the penultimate episode of ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing'', as White Fang's plans fall apart, Dorothy Catalonia breaks down but can't shed any tears. As he leaves her behind, [[SugarAndIcePersonality Trowa Barton]] remarks: "That's sad. A woman who can't cry." In a subversion, once Dorothy is alone, she ''does'' start to cry.

* Shion from ''Manga/HellsParadiseJigokuraku'' is physically unable to cry due to his damaged eyes, and berates himself for his inability to mourn for his dead friend, Tenza. All he can do instead is to seek revenge against the monster who killed Tenza.
* In ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEEDDestiny'' Kira, in a stark contrast to how he used to be, has gone from tear prone as he was in SEED to not crying at all. Even in situations where the battle-hardened Athrun cries he doesn't shed a tear. The reason for such a severe change are never really touched upon but the implications of it being a combination of general battle weariness and PTSD are there.
* In ''Literature/TheWayToProtectTheFemaleLeadsOlderBrother'', Dion is permanently unable to cry (and emotionally stunted in general) as a result of his upbringing. Due to this, he'a also endlessly fascinated with his half-sister's (who went through the same upbringing) ability to cry, to the point of going out of his way to [[KickTheDog give her reasons to be sad]].

* In ''Manga/KaguyaSamaLoveIsWar'', Kaguya notes she is unable to shed any tears over [[spoiler:the death of her father]], even though she thinks that she should. This doesn't mean that she wasn't emotionally affected, though; [[spoiler:she's clearly quite sad when she wishes she could have taken Gan'an's picture]].

* Surprisingly averted in the story record based on [[Creator/{{Atari}} Atari's]] game ''VideoGame/YarsRevenge.'' Yars are giant mutant houseflies. When a young Yar warrior in the story goes off to battle, his mother's huge multifaceted eyes have tears in them.

* Professor X in ''ComicBook/UltimateXMen'' was unable to cry at his son Proteus' funeral and he berated himself for it. Of course, the fact that Proteus was a mass-murderer who killed over a million people worldwide and was going to kill him might have something to do with that.

* In one ''ComicBook/RomSpaceKnight'' story, Rom spends the issue trying to rescue a little girl from his enemies the Dire Wraiths. When he finally reaches her, he can't detect any life signs and believes she has drowned. He cradles the little body in his arms and shudders, making little choking sounds, and [[ComicBook/SubMariner Namor]] realizes the cyborg literally ''can't'' cry. [[spoiler: Namor manages to save her life with Atlantean tech, though.]]
* Jesse Custer, the protagonist of the series ''ComicBook/{{Preacher}}'', saw his father killed in front of him at the age of five. Naturally, he cried his eyes out, until the murderer, a sadistic bastard, sneered at him for crying. Jesse stopped crying right then, refusing to show weakness to these monsters, and swore never to cry again. He never does, even when [[spoiler: the love of his life is similarly murdered (by the same people) in front of him]]. [[spoiler:In the end of the series, he is finally able to cry again when Tulip is about to leave him for good. This is what convinces her to try to make their relationship work.]]
* In ''ComicBook/AllFallDown'', Portia is this in spades, [[spoiler:before breaking down in the Ghoul's arms after he averts her attempted suicide]].

* In ''FanFic/TheOuroboros'', Mikey is the only one of the six spacefarers who remains dry-eyed after relaying the news that [[spoiler:Splinter died in their absence]]. This is implied to be partly because he was forced to snap into HeroicSafeMode after learning this, and none of the others are in any condition to help pull him out of it after hearing that.

* Referenced in ''Film/MysticRiver'' where Sean Penn's character sobs "My own little daughter and I can't even cry for her!" "Jimmy, you're crying now!"
* In ''Film/TheHoliday'', Amanda Woods can't cry. It's part of the trumped-up reason her boyfriend says he cheated on her during the DefenestrateAndBerate scene at the beginning; that he's freaked out by her emotionlessness. But eventually ThePowerOfLove is upon her, and she finds herself crying because she has to leave her new love interest. This produces a delighted reaction to her, and leads straight into a RaceForYourLove scene.
* The action star Tug Speedman in ''Film/TropicThunder'' can't cry on set, leading to a rift between him and the "award winner" Kirk Lazarus.

* ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'':
-->'''T-800:''' I know now why you cry. But it's something I can never do.
* Addressed directly in ''Film/HellboyIITheGoldenArmy''. Hellboy and Abe are listening to "Can't Smile Without You" and Abe notes that he physically can't smile and isn't even sure if he has tear ducts. [[spoiler: Then Nuala dies--turns out he does.]]
* In ''Film/BicentennialMan'', Andrew is envious of Portia when she cries after Little Miss dies. He comments that it isn't fair to be capable of feeling so much sadness and incapable of expressing it.
-->"It's cruel that you can cry and I cannot. There is a terrible pain I cannot express."
* A unique example in ''Film/StarTrekVITheUndiscoveredCountry'', Scotty tells Spock that the daughter of Chancellor Gorkon didn't 'shed one bloody tear!'. Spock points out Klingons don't have tear ducts. Furthermore, the first missive she issues clearly shows her bereavement.

-->'''Mary:''' ''[voiceover]'' I was angry, but I didn't cry. I didn't know how to cry.
* In ''Film/AmazingGrace'', John Newton, the blind former slave trader, is last seen dictating his memoirs/confession to a scribe, (in which he gives full details of the atrocities he took part in,) and tells Wilberforce that despite decades of crushing guilt, he wasn't actually able to weep until he wrote it. The TearsOfRemorse he is finally able to shed are clearly a great weight off his soul.

* ''Literature/BalladOfAShinigami'': Since the dead can't cry, Momo cries for them.
* Albert Camus' ''Literature/TheStranger'' : one of the points used against the main character in his trial is the fact that he didn't cry at his mother's funeral. He argues that it is hard to cry for a woman who lives a long happy life and then dies peacefully.
* Molly the StreetSamurai from ''Literature/{{Neuromancer}}'', mainly because she has mirrored shades surgically implanted over her eyes, so her tear ducts are redirected into her mouth. She's so unspeakably badass that she doesn't cry, she ''spits.''
* All through ''Specials'' (the third book in the ''Literature/{{Uglies}}'' trilogy), Tally says that she doesn't think that Specials are physically capable of crying. She gets pretty close to crying at quite a few points, but she never actually cries. [[spoiler: Until the end]].
* Rand Al Thor continually hardens himself as a defence mechanism in ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'', to the point it is mentioned on several occasions he wanted to cry, wished he could, but finds himself unable to, as well as expressing any true emotion anymore, and even trying to stop himself feeling them. This was just one aspect of a 7 book breakdown.

* In ''Literature/HarryPotterAndTheGobletOfFire'', Harry meets with the Diggorys at the end to talk to them about Cedric's death. Mr. Diggory sobs throughout, but the book notes that Mrs. Diggory seems beyond tears.
* Tobias of ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'' spent ''so'' much time [[ShapeshifterModeLock trapped]] in the form of a red-tailed hawk that even when he returns to human form, his predatory mindset prevents him from crying. This saves his life on one occasion--[[spoiler:he's just found out who his father really was, but he needs to pretend that he doesn't believe what he's been told.]]

* The eponymous character of the {{Literature/Eisenhorn}} novels in the TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}} universe is not only unable to cry but [[FrozenFace express nearly any facial expression change due to nerve damage sustained under torture]], which he captor explicits taunts him over.
* Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt in [[Literature/GauntsGhosts Gaunt's Ghosts]] novel ''Blood Pact'' is a particular example. [[spoiler: Due to [[Main/EyeScream having his eyes ripped out]] during his torture on Jago in the novel ''Only in Death'',]] he is unable to cry when his old friend, Doctor Tolin Dorden reveals [[spoiler: that he is dying of blood cancer, as his new eyes are artificial implants which cannot perform that one function.]]
-->'''Ibram Gaunt:''' My eyes will not let me cry, old friend.
* The protagonist of Brian Keene's short story "The Garden Where My Rain Grows" suffers from this problem. He can get sad over the deaths of loved ones, but he's never been able to cry. Not before the apocalypse[[labelnote:*]]which, ironically, comes in the form of a never-ending rainstorm[[/labelnote]], not after, not when his oldest friend is decapitated by Satanists. He finally finds himself able to cry at the end, after [[spoiler: a [[KrakenAndLeviathan Kraken]] kills his LoveInterest.]]
* In Teresa Frohock's ''Literature/MiserereAnAutumnTale'', Lucian freezes after [[spoiler:Catarina]] dies. Rachael holds him a long time and nearly gives up before he sobs.
* In ''Literature/BlindFaith'' by Ben Elton, protagonist Trafford lives in a dystopian society where every detail of one's life is public to all, and people are frequently encouraged to "emote" and share their every thought with others. At one point, a colleague is unable to cry when she is urged to express her feelings over the death of her baby son. Others in the office are disappointed with her, but Trafford notes that her quiet dignity somehow makes a bigger statement than a flood of tears.
* In Creator/JohnHemry's Literature/PaulSinclair novel ''A Just Determination'', the other junior officers grow worried over Carl Meadows after a sailor's death because he is neither crying nor otherwise reacting after days.
* In ''Literature/TheLastUnicorn'', unicorns never cry because they never feel the kind of human grief and regret that would prompt them. After a stint as a human to save her fellows, the unicorn confesses that she is now full of tears even though she cannot cry.
* In ''Literature/TheUnderlandChronicles'', [[WellExcuseMePrincess Gregor]] really starts warming up to [[DefrostingIceQueen Luxa]] when she tells him that she has not cried since her parents' deaths. [[spoiler: When her cousin Henry betrays her at the end of ''Gregor the Overlander'', she goes into a [[HeroicBSOD catatonic state]] of sorts, and it seems like she still won't cry - until she sees [[ParentalSubstitute Vikus.]]]]
* In Creator/AletheaKontis's ''Literature/{{Enchanted}}'', Rumbold while [[spoiler:saying goodbye to his mother's ghost.]]
* In Creator/SeananMcGuire's ''Literature/OctoberDaye'' novel ''Rosemary And Rue'', Toby is unable to cry the entire day after she realizes that she had been transformed for fourteen years and lost her entire life; only at evening does she break down.
* In the "First Lay of Gudrun" of the ''Literature/PoeticEdda'', Gudrun does not weep over her murdered husband Sigurd. Several women attempt to console her by relating their own sad stories but fail to get a reaction. Finally, Gudrun's sister Gullrönd uncovers Sigurd's corpse; when Gudrun sees Sigurd's face, she cries.
-->''Gudrun sat by the dead Sigurd; she did not weep like other women, even though her heart was near to bursting with grief.''
* In the ''{{Literature/Nightside}}'' series, Merlin Satanspawn's eyes are flames that burn within empty eye sockets. When Taylor and Suzie meet him in the 6th century, he sadly speaks of how, after King Arthur died, he couldn't even weep for his friend and protege because his eyes aren't built that way.
* In the ''Series/DoctorWho'' novel ''Set Piece''. As Ace, stuck in ancient Egypt, gets to grips with the fact that the Doctor [[spoiler: ''did'' apparently die]] and is not coming back for her, she tries to grieve for the Doctor's loss and finds she can't cry.
-->"'It doesn't hurt.' She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to find some part of herself that wanted to cry. 'Why doesn't it hurt?"
* In ''Literature/SecretLies'' by Amy Dunne, Jenny can't seem to cry since her grandmother's death, until near the end of the book when [[spoiler:her girlfriend has been brutally attacked]].
* This is the meaning of the title of Creator/AlanDeanFoster's novel ''Nor Crystal Tears.'' The Thranx are a race of intelligent [[BigCreepyCrawlies giant insects,]] and while they feel love and sorrow just as humans do, they cannot cry.
* The central character in ''Literature/TheMentalState'' undergoes a series of traumatic experiences that deeply affect him. To cope with everything and enable himself to deal with situations constructively, he shuts down almost all of his emotions, becoming a sociopath. [[spoiler:He only escapes from this mindset after he is forced to revisit the event that scarred him in the first place, resulting in him breaking down in tears and howls]].
* One book in the ''Literature/TheBabySittersClub'' series involves Claudia dealing with the loss of her beloved grandmother. At the funeral, she finds herself unable to cry; unaware that it's a fairly common reaction to loss, she worries something is wrong with her. When her emotions do catch up with her, they manifest in bizarre and unpredictable ways; it isn't until she breaks down completely that she's able to begin to heal.
* ''Literature/TheLittleMermaid'': Mermaids are unable to shed tears, which makes their grief all the worse. When the title character [[spoiler:becomes an angelic spirit for choosing to die rather than sacrifice her prince's life, she weeps for the first time.]]
* ''Literature/TheInnsmouthLegacy''. Aphra Marsh refuses to cry when she reads the FBI file on her [[TheyWouldCutYouUp mother's murder and autopsy by government scientists]]. She's one of the [[FishPeople Deep Ones]] so the shedding of salt water has religious associations.
* Mermaids in the ''Literature/{{Thora}}'' books don't cry. Instead, their tails turn pale when they're sad.
* In the ''Literature/DolphinTrilogy'', John is [[RaisedByWolves raised by dolphins]] and doesn't laugh or cry because he had no one to learn those behaviors from. In his early adulthood, he [[RescueRomance rescues Della from drowning]], and when she cries in front of him, he's alarmed and confused by her behavior, although he can see it's a distress signal. When Della leaves him, he finally cries for the first time since the dolphins took him in.
* ''Literature/{{Siren}}'': Vanessa loved her sister Justine, but after Justine's death, she finds herself unable to shed a tear.

* In the penultimate episode of ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing'', as White Fang's plans fall apart, [[DarkChick Dorothy Catalonia]] breaks down but can't shed any tears. As he leaves her behind, [[SugarAndIcePersonality Trowa Barton]] remarks: "That's sad. A woman who can't cry." In a subversion, once Dorothy is alone, she ''does'' start to cry.

* {{Subverted|Trope}} in the manga of ''VideoGame/MegaManX'', in which the fact that [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots X]] ''can'' cry is what shocks Zero.

* In ''Lord of Emperors'', the widowed, hunted and revenge-seeking Empress must be convinced to "allow herself to grieve" by a physician who is sheltering her from the new Emperor's guards. "We must bend before we break" is a big philosophy for said physician, and is borne out several times in the ending.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'': Data, being an [[RidiculouslyHumanRobot androids]], has this problem, despite the [[TheWoobie multiple tragedies]] that inform his life. It's patently obvious to everyone but him (including the audience) that he can ''feel'', however. He loses this limitation after getting Soong's [[PersonalityChip emotion chip]]. The [[ExpandedUniverse novel]] ''Immortal Coil'' has everything he didn't express all drop on him at once, to the point of what would be clinical depression in a human.

* The Machinesmith, a ''ComicBoo/CaptainAmerica'' villain who went through an EmergencyTransformation and is very unhappy about it. "I... I can no longer even... cry."

[[folder:Audio Drama]]
* Surprisingly averted in the story record based on [[Creator/{{Atari}} Atari's]] game ''VideoGame/YarsRevenge.'' Yars are giant mutant houseflies. When a young Yar warrior in the story goes off to battle, his mother's huge multifaceted eyes have tears in them.
[[/folder]]

** Happens to Edward in [[Anime/FullmetalAlchemist the 2003 anime version]] when he kills Sloth and he comments that Wrath can cry for her while he can't.
* The Princess in ''Anime/{{Naruto}} TheMovie: Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow''. To do a scene where her character cries (She's a RebelliousPrincess-turned-Actress), she needs eye drops. [[spoiler:She does cry for real at the end, though]].

* In the ''Anime/{{Monster}}'' manga, [[StepfordSmiler Wolfgang Grimmer]] regrets his inability to cry or otherwise respond to emotional situations, such as his son's death, owing to his upbringing [[spoiler:at Kinderheim 511]]. This is {{subverted}} when Grimmer bursts into tears when trying to comfort a traumatised child after [[spoiler: rescuing the child from suicide.]] Later, when [[spoiler:dying from a gunshot wound]], he is finally able to cry for his son.

* ''Literature/FullMetalPanic''

* In [[VisualNovel/{{Clannad}} Clannad After Story]], Tomoya tells Ushio about how, when you become an adult, you often can't cry even when you want to. Not long after, though, [[spoiler: [[AvertedTrope he discovers he's still got plenty of tears left,]] even though if anyone should be numb to sadness, [[TraumaCongaLine it's him.]]]]
* ''Manga/GunslingerGirl''. Cyborg girl Claes whenever she sees something that reminds her of her dead handler Captain Raballo (who has been wiped from her memory).

* {{Subverted|Trope}} in the Manga of VideoGame/MegaManX, where the fact that [[RidiculouslyHumanRobot X]] ''can'' cry is what shocks Zero.
* In ''Manga/OnePiece'', despite how much he wants to when [[spoiler: Rebecca tearfully announces him her will to win the tournament for the Mera Mera no Mi]], the Thunder Soldier in the Dressrosa arc is ''literally'' unable to cry, due to being a LivingToy. [[spoiler:Thankfully, his toy status is later fixed, revealing him as a human named Kyros. When the whole thing was over, he [[InelegantBlubbering made up for all those tearless years in one go]]]].
--> "Even toys have things they want to protect. But tears won't fall from these tin eyes..."

* In ''Literature/TheWayToProtectTheFemaleLeadsOlderBrother'' Dion is permanently unable to cry (and emotionally stunted in general) as a result of his upbringing. Due to this, he'a also endlessly fascinated with his half-sister's (who went through the same upbringing) ability to cry, to the point of going out of his way to [[KickTheDog give her reasons to be sad]].

* Professor X in ComicBook/UltimateXMen was unable to cry at his son Proteus' funeral and he berated himself for it. Of course, the fact that Proteus was a mass-murderer who killed over a million people worldwide and was going to kill him might have something to do with that.
* The Machinesmith, a MarvelUniverse villain who went through an EmergencyTransformation and is very unhappy about it. "I... I can no longer even... cry."

* In ''ComicBook/AllFallDown'', Portia is this in spades, [[spoiler:before breaking down in the Ghoul's arms after he averts her attempted suicide.]]

* ''ComicBook/RobinSeries'': When Tim has to attend the funerals of his father, his girlfriend and a school friend who'd died in his arms after he failed to save her all in the same week he finds that by the end of the week, for the last funeral he just can't cry anymore no matter how disrespectful he feels that is.

* ''Series/{{House}}'' claims he cannot cry in one episode, although he's cried at least twice and got misty-eyed far more times than a supposed NietzscheWannabe should.

* This happens to Mariah Cirrus, rescued from a sleeper pod in an abandoned ship in the second season of ''Series/BabylonFive'', due to the cryogenic process drying out her tear ducts.

* On ''Series/{{Taxi}},'' when Reverend Jim's father dies, Jim is upset because he hasn't cried yet. Then he realizes he ''is'' crying. And he asks, "But am I crying because I miss you, or am I crying because I didn't cry?" He decides it doesn't matter and he's glad the tears have finally come.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'': Data, being an [[RidiculouslyHumanRobot android]], had this problem, despite the [[TheWoobie multiple tragedies]] that informed his life. It was patently obvious to everyone but him (including the audience) that he could ''feel'', however. He loses this limitation after getting Soong's [[PersonalityChip emotion chip]]. The [[ExpandedUniverse novel]] ''Immortal Coil'' has everything he didn't express all drop on him at once, to the point of what would be clinical depression in a human.

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* For a villainous example, in the ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' episode "Heart of Ice", Batman is horrified when he discovers [[TragicVillain Mr. Freeze's]] DarkAndTroubledPast. When Mr. Freeze himself shows up immediately afterwards...

* The ''WesternAnimation/CourageTheCowardlyDog'' episode ''The Tower Of Dr. Zalost'' has a very unique example. The villain Dr. Zalost has a rat henchman who appears cold and only snarls or sighs. Towards the end, the rat gets hit with the [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Happy Cannonball]] which turns him into a crying baby. Fans have speculated that he was [[EmotionSuppression bottling up his emotions]] which prevented him from letting any tears out.
* In an early episode of ''{{WesternAnimation/Futurama}}'', Fry [[ItMakesSenseInContext drinks an alien emperor whose body is made of liquid and sleeps in a glass bottle and is crowned the new emperor]], which seems great until it becomes clear that the role has a ridiculously high turnover rate, being almost a guaranteed ticket to assassination. When it turns out that the old emperor he drank isn't really dead, but is alive inside his stomach, the options of getting him out are narrowed down to Fry crying, which he can't because he's "too macho"; even a reminder that he [[HumanPopsicle outlived everyone he ever loved]] is [[AngstWhatAngst easily shrugged off]]. Bender finally finds some success by telling him that Leela was brutally murdered on her way over to help him out, but Leela, who's not in on the plan, actually shows up before he's shed more than a few tears. [[spoiler:The ultimate solution, of course, [[CuttingTheKnot is for all his friends to kick the crap out of him until he sheds tears of pain]]. It works. Then the emperor himself says, "Thanks for crying me out!" and takes over the pummeling.]]

-->'''Pinkie Pie:''' [[HeWillNotCrySoICryForHim I'm mostly sad because you're NOT sad!]]
-->'''Twilight Sparkle:''' Me? What about Applejack?
-->'''Pinkie Pie:''' Applejack cries on the inside, Twilight!
-->'''Applejack:''' It's true.[[note]]It's worth noting that Applejack has cried in other episodes, but mostly tears of joy, and never a big public display of emotion.[[/note]]
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' episode "Girly Edition:"
-->'''Lindsey Naegle''': Bart, look up here! This is where the tears would be if I could cry! But I can't. Botched facelift. You could learn a lot from him, Mary Anne!\\
'''Lisa''': It's Lisa.\\
'''Lindsey Naegle''': Mary Anne's better!

* In the ''WesternAnimation/SpongebobSquarepants'' episode "Have You Seen This Snail?", Spongebob's pet snail Gary has run away. Near the end, Patrick tries to get Spongebob to let it out some more, after days of failed searches, but he laments that he can't cry anymore and that he's out of tears. It's subverted a second later when Patrick finds some balsa wood laying around, prompting Spongebob to turn on the OcularGushers again because Gary really loved balsa wood.
* This is the focus of the ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'' episode "An Indirect Kiss", in which Steven must help a disfigured Amethyst with his mother's healing {{Swiss Army Tears}}, thus pushing him to try to cry, even though he finds himself unable to, even when he tries to force it when thinking about his mother, who he [[MissingMom never knew]]. Fortunately, he later discovers he has healing ''spit'' instead at the end of the episode.

* ''LightNovel/FullMetalPanic''

* In ''Lightnovel/TheWayToProtectTheFemaleLeadsOlderBrother'' Dion is permanently unable to cry (and emotionally stunted in general) as a result of his upbringing. Due to this, he'a also endlessly fascinated with his half-sister's (who went through the same upbringing) ability to cry, to the point of going out of his way to [[KickTheDog give her reasons to be sad]].

* ''LightNovel/BalladOfAShinigami'': Since the dead can't cry, Momo cries for them.

** Alphonse literally ''can't cry''. He comments on how Edward has the ability to cry, yet doesn't use it when Al wants to so badly.