THE ENIGMA OF CUTIFICATION
What do Britney Spears, Paris Hilton and Mariah Carey, whoever they are, have in common? They've been spotted with what has come to be called: "Hello Kitty gear." Which is to say they've been spotted wearing or bearing or otherwise identifying with the cartoon figure of a white mouthless kitten, as a means of cutification. Why they should require this manner of cutification is not reported. Many formerly hypocute persons have been so spotted, it would seem, though no one I know has been, or at least they never mentioned it to me, which I suppose is understandable.The pathogenic cuteness of which I have spoken before in these meandering chronicles has now not only become international, it is oozing upward among the age groups. Here in Japan, the origin of Kabuki, Noh, Zen and Hello Kitty, those full-grown adults among us who are as yet unspotted are watching out for the approach of America's Blue's Clues dog, whatever that is, which canine will be mating, after a fashion (in a marketing way), with the Kitty from Hello, their union resulting in who knows what monstrously cute interspecies creature we'll soon be spotted wearing around our necks.
If we make our moves right, though, some of us may remain uncute.
5 comments:
Well, I think I know why this is happening with these woman, but it is not a nice reflection on our society, so I will not comment further.
Aw, I'm a kitty person!
Seriously, nobody would be looking at these women strangely if they were wearing Mickey Mouse shirts instead of Kitty-Chan. Or [insert designer here]. What's wrong with loving Sanrio characters?
Blue's clues is not longer in vogue over here. He wore out his welcome it seems with the toddler set. So you may have him to mate with Kitty.
What is wrong with me. When thinking of their progeny, the image of Katherine Harris, Congresswoman from Florida popped into my head.
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Shortwoman, Hello Kitty is just an icon of my ongoing tongue-in-cheek battle against cutification as a manifestation of the acceleration of globalization. I've seen her go from poorly limned pencilbox ornament to diamond-encrusted platinum in the blink of an eye. Just the thing for tongues in cheeks...
Nothing wrong with you, Chancy. Something along those lines may well be the interspecial result...
Heh well then true story.
I was in the Sanrio store in the Las Vegas Showplace Mall (right on the strip). I lived in Vegas at the time (near Cheyenne and Durango if anybody cares). Vegas, of course, is all about bigger, flashier, more ostentatious, and of course bling. The *adult size* manniquin out front is sporting a Hello Kitty shirt, I am wearing my HK hat, people are shopping. There is sterling silver jewelry in the case by the register. If memory serves they actually had some of the HK anti-AIDS shirts in stock. I am near a wall looking at something when a tallish woman next to me examines a handbag on the wall and exclaims "My! Isn't that a fancy purse for a little girl!"
I smiled as I turned to her and said "That one isn't for little girls."
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