Can You Really Detect Click Events on CSS Pseudo-Elements?

Detecting Click Events on Pseudo-Elements: A Myth Debunked

Despite the allure of manipulating elements with advanced styling techniques, pseudo-elements like the ubiquitous :before and :after remain elusive when it comes to event detection. As seasoned developers know, the browser's event bubbling and capturing mechanisms bypass pseudo-elements entirely.

As demonstrated in the provided code snippet, a click event bound to the parent element, in this case a paragraph, will be triggered regardless of where within the element the click occurs. This includes both the blue background and the red pseudo-element.

The reason for this event propagation behavior lies in the inherent nature of pseudo-elements. They are not actual DOM elements but rather a means of augmenting the presentation of existing elements. As a result, they lack the ability to receive direct events.

If you crave the ability to handle clicks exclusively on a pseudo-element, you must consider a different approach. One solution is to create a child element, such as a span, that is nested within the parent and visually positioned to match the pseudo-element. By styling the child element instead of the pseudo-element and binding an event listener to it, you can effectively capture clicks solely on the area of interest.

While this workaround may not perfectly replicate the simplicity of directly detecting clicks on a pseudo-element, it remains the most viable solution to achieve the desired functionality.

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