The past few years has shown a huge explosion of obsession with cats on the internet. This really started in 2007 with the emergence of the website "icanhazcheezburger.com". This website features LOLCATS and cat memes, and quickly became one of the most visited meme websites online. But why cats?! It seems foolish for pictures of cats with captions to become such a hit. But upon closer consideration, it makes perfect sense. Cats are furry little creatures that generally have quite an attitude and they are a little too curious for their own good. They make funny faces, and matched with the right caption, it is just the perfect time passing type of comedy that people are addicted to now a days. This is the reason why a picture or video of a cat can get millions of views in just a few short days. But this whole cat craze may not be such a new phenomenon.
Think of the Austin Powers movies. Dr. Evil had a cat named Mr. Bigglesworth that he held in his lap and stroked as he conspired his evil plans to take over the world. This cat was by no means cute of furry, but the cat and Dr. Evil's relationship with it added another level of comedy to these scenes just because the cat was present. Similarly, as we read for this week's readings, dictator Vladimir Lenin too had a cat that he held and stroked in his lap. (Possibly while he was conspiring his plans to take over the world?). It is possible that Dr. Evil's cat was inspired by Lenin, but both examples truly show how some people regard cats. It is no surprise to me anymore when I open youtube and see a featured video with millions of views, and it is just a cat getting into trouble. History, and the emergence of the internet, has created a pathway for cats to rise into comedy fame.
It's interesting to think of the points you are making and it sparks my interest. I didnt realize how many cats were associated with movies and "important" people around the world. Cats are an innocent and boring animal but yet movies use cats all the time! Really wondering why cats became so popular!
ReplyDeleteMaybe people getting into trouble just think they are getting into trouble--maybe it is their cats who are getting into trouble through them?
ReplyDeleteSeriously, though, it does seem like there is just something about cat videos that is fascinating beyond the videos of almost any other animal. The tongue-in-cheek article raised the question of the relationship between different animals and different sets of politics. I wonder why it is, though, that it is cat videos, not dog videos or other videos, that have become the meme. Is it just chance, or is there something inherent about cats at work here?