TresSugar

The Dark Side of Cute

TresSugar — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:00:00 -0800

Kittens in casts. Babies nudged to laugh every five seconds. Stuffed teddy bears left at killing-spree sites. We are so surrounded by the tyranny of cute that even multibillion-dollar corporations have cute names like "Google" and "Twitter," and the uncute business of insurance is represented in ads by a cute lizard with an English accent. (And yes, I too am guilty of spreading cuteness.)

What's up with the cute? Writer Jim Windolf has had enough and decided to try to get to the bottom of what he calls the "self-infantalization" of Americans. His conclusion? There's a dark, manipulative side to cute. If you want to know what it is, read more.

In Daniel Harris's book Cute, Quaint, Hungry, and Romantic, he says that there's a hidden sadism to our love of cute, citing the barrage of images of cats falling, puppies slamming into mirrors, and even babies trapped in high chairs being prodded to laugh.

"The process of conveying cuteness to the viewer disempowers its objects," he writes, "forcing them into ridiculous situations and making them appear more ignorant and vulnerable than they really are. Adorable things are often most adorable in the middle of a pratfall or a blunder." In other words, they are cute insofar as they are helpless, and we, conferrers of cute, are all-powerful.

Becoming cute, conversely, is one way of disarming opponents or critics. It's not incidental, argues Windolf, that the cult of cute in the US emerged during the Bush years, when "the American image went from that of protector to invader, from defender of human rights to aggressor on the lookout for loopholes in the Geneva Conventions." Cuteness then, according to this theory, "came about as some sort of correction, as a way for us to convince ourselves and our friends that we're not as bad as our recent national actions have made us seem." (It reminds me of smiley emoticons at the end of passive-aggressive email messages and instant messages. In this case, American cute is like a ginormous cultural smiley face emoticon tacked on the end of dubious actions telling our allies we're not all that bad.)

Windolf traces American cute back to Japan's kawaii culture, which got huge 10 years ago but actually emerged at the end of WWII after it was "humiliated and emasculated." If you're interested in political and cultural psychoanalysis, I suggest reading this long essay. But whatever you do, remember - ~~sometimes a cigar is just a cigar~~ sometimes a cute kitten isn't just a cute kitten.

Source

No Bunny Was Harmed in the Shooting of These Orangutan Pics

PetSugar — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:00:30 -0800

Peipei the orangutan found an unlikely pal in a bunny that hopped through his exhibit. Don't worry, Peipei played nicely and then let the rabbit hop right along . . . but their interactions are adorable nonetheless. Check them out when you get started in this slideshow!

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Play Our Baby Animal Faceoff For a Chance to Win $1,000!

PetSugar — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 03:00:51 -0800

Admit it: you're just as addicted to adoro zoo babies as I am. From big cats (still small) to birds too tiny to fly, I can't get enough of all their little faces. Soooo, here's your chance to see if you can stare them down, too. Cute lil eyes beg you to pick a favorite in our Which Baby Animal Is Cuter? faceoff. Need I mention, every time you play you're eligible to win big? We'll be giving away a $1,000 grand prize every month - you must be logged in, and you'll be entered once each time you play. (Check out the official rules here.) What are you waiting for? Get started!

Happy Caturday!

TresSugar — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 03:47:00 -0800

I love when cats go into crouching ~~tiger~~ kitten, hidden dragon mode on little bugs. They don't want to kill them, necessarily, they just enjoy little scurrying things. (OK, maybe they want to eff with them a teensy bit.) His flexibility is quite impressive, I have to say.

Insanely Cute Alert! Piglet Kingsford Goes to the Beach (and More)

PetSugar — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:50:53 -0800

OK, so maybe you don't buy into all the teensy piggie hype. I hear ya - some animals that reach "fad" status, especially those praised for tiny, teacup sizes, can have health issues or be discarded. . . . once they grow bigger than expected. Now I'm weak for videos of nearly any cute species doing cute stuff and this mini flick of Kingsford meeting a cat, navigating the steps and frolicking in the water is too much to pass up on my dreary Friday. Check it out for yourself below!

Costumed Creatures! Peep Sweet Halloween Pics From All of You

Pet Community — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 08:00:02 -0800

Howl-o-ween and Meow-lo-ween have come and gone but I had to share all the sweet (and spooky) costumes we saw in our community. From toads to hedgehogs, peep the wild costumes shared with PetSugar's Dress Up Extravaganza and remember you can still share absolutely any ensembles year-round.

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Hi, Chickee: Peep a Teensy Harpy Eagle Babe

PetSugar — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:30:50 -0800

With the birth of this lil one, the Miami Metrozoo became the second zoo in the US to ever successfully breed the rare Harpy Eagle. Check out this baby and learn a bit more about the species in this slideshow.

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Happy Caturday!

TresSugar — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 09:02:54 -0700

This squash-faced kitteh sure has the sweet life! Not only does he get fed by hand, with chopsticks, but if his human ~~companion~~ servant doesn't do it fast enough, he swats her! It's good to be the king.

Happy Halloween From North!

PetSugar — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 09:00:07 -0700

Seems only fitting that my little food scavenger was fitted up as a pirate! Thanks to my mom, North didn't have to go costume-less today - and he thought not one, but two ensembles last year meant he would have a break in '09?! Not quite, little boy. Next week, we'll be rounding up all of your costumes so, if you're snapping pics, add them to the group. Happy Howl-o-ween and Meow-lo-ween everybody!

Play Our Baby Animal Faceoff For a Chance to Win $1,000!

PetSugar — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 07:00:43 -0700