The Quiet Rebellion of a POCO's Life
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A reflective essay on the enduring value of Plain Old CLR Objects (POCOs) in .NET development. Drawing on over two decades of experience, the author argues that a POCO's refusal to inherit from framework base classes or carry infrastructure-specific attributes is not laziness but disciplined design. The piece traces how framework-coupled objects age poorly while POCOs remain portable, testable, and durable across framework generations. It also addresses the 'anemic domain model' criticism, distinguishing between coupling concerns and behavioral richness. The modern .NET ecosystem — Entity Framework Core, ASP.NET Core, and C# records — is presented as evidence that the ecosystem eventually moved toward POCO-friendly design.
Table of contents
A Rebel Is BornThe World It Enters — A Landscape of ColonizationWhat It Refuses — Discipline, Not LazinessThe Journey — Traveling Across LayersThe Temptation — When the Framework Wants MoreThe Identity Crisis — Anemic or Pure?What Survives — The Quiet VictoryLegacy — The Idea Evolves, But Does Not DiePlain Is the Result of Thought, Not the Absence of It46.6K Impressions1 Comment