Cat lady explained

A cat lady is a cultural archetype or stock character, most often depicted as a middle-aged or elderly spinster or widow, who has many cats. The term may be pejorative, or it may be affectionately embraced. The term "cat lady" is embraced by cat lovers, especially when someone else tries to use it as an insult.

Usage and association

Women who have cats have long been associated with the concept of spinsterhood, widowhood or even witchcraft. In more recent decades, the concept of a cat lady has been associated with "romance-challenged (often career-oriented) women". The term "cat lady" has also been used as a pejorative term towards women without children, regardless of if they actually own cats.[1] [2]

Depending on context, the ordinarily pejorative word "crazy" may be prepended to "cat lady" to indicate either a pejorative[3] or a humorous and affectionate label.[4] Some writers, celebrities, and artists have challenged the gender-based "Crazy Cat Lady" stereotype, and embraced the term to mean an animal lover or rescuer who cares for one or multiple cats, and who is psychologically healthy.[5] [6] [7] Naftali Berrill, Ph.D., Director of the New York Center for Neuropsychology and Forensic Behavioral Science, told AOL Health, "These may be people who have a very hard time expressing themselves to other people. They may find the human need for affection is met most easily through a relationship with a pet." This devotion can sometimes signal mental or emotional issues such as depression.[8] A cat lady may also be an animal hoarder who keeps large numbers of cats without having the ability to properly house or care for them.[9]

Toxoplasma gondii

Some studies indicate a link between the parasite Toxoplasma gondii, which sexually reproduces exclusively in cats, and numerous psychiatric conditions, including obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and schizophrenia,[10] [11] whereas other studies have showed that T. gondii is not a causative factor in later psychoses.[12] [13] The compulsive hoarding of cats, a symptom of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), has long been associated with "crazy cat ladies".[14] Crazy cat-lady syndrome is a term coined by news organizations to describe scientific findings that link Toxoplasma gondii to several mental disorders and behavioral problems.[15]

Notable examples

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2024-08-01 . Opinion How JD Vance plans to punish childless Americans . 2024-08-03 . MSNBC.com . en.
  2. News: The Weird Intellectual Roots of J.D. Vance’s Hatred for “Cat Ladies” . 2024-08-03 . The New Republic . 0028-6583.
  3. Web site: Crazy Cat Ladies . Kiri . Blakeley . 15 October 2009 . Forbes.
  4. Web site: Do you believe in the Crazy Cat Lady? . Mark . Ramirez . 5 August 2009 . TimesUnion.com . 30 November 2011 . 3 December 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20131203013716/http://blog.timesunion.com/mydogbandit/do-you-believe-in-the-crazy-cat-lady/2080/ . dead .
  5. Web site: Beth Ostrosky Stern: I am a crazy cat lady... and I'm proud of it . Nicki . Gostin . NYDailyNews.com . 15 September 2015.
  6. Web site: It's time to smash the 'crazy cat lady' stereotype . MNN - Mother Nature Network.
  7. News: Meet the Men Proud to Be Crazy Cat Ladies . Williams . David . ABC News . 12 November 2015.
  8. Web site: Huso . Deborah . November 2009 . Some Live Among Hundreds of Cats . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20091119071209/http://www.aolhealth.com/condition-center/mental-health/cat-lady . 19 November 2009 . AOL Health.
  9. Davis . Susan . Flaherty (illus.) . Jake . September 2002 . Prosecuting Animal Hoarders is like Herding Cats . dead . California Lawyer . 26, 28, 29, 67 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100529081942/http://www.tufts.edu/vet/hoarding/pubs/herdingcats.pdf . 29 May 2010 . 26 June 2011.
  10. How Your Cat Is Making You Crazy . Kathleen . McAuliffe . 6 February 2012 . The Atlantic . 3 June 2013 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20130603010600/http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/03/how-your-cat-is-making-you-crazy/308873/ . 3 June 2013.
  11. Webster . Joanne P. . Kaushik . Maya . Bristow . Greg C. . McConkey . Glenn A. . 1 January 2013 . Toxoplasma gondii infection, from predation to schizophrenia: Can animal behaviour help us understand human behaviour? . The Journal of Experimental Biology . 216 . 1 . 99–112 . 10.1242/jeb.074716 . 0022-0949 . 3515034 . 23225872.
  12. Web site: Cat ownership not linked to mental health problems, study says . Johanzynn . Gatewood . CNN . 22 February 2017.
  13. Curiosity killed the cat: No evidence of an association between cat ownership and psychotic symptoms at ages 13 and 18 years in a UK general population cohort . F. . Solmi . J. F. . Hayes. G. . Lewis . J. B. . Kirkbride . 31 July 2017 . Psychological Medicine . 47 . 9 . 1659–1667 . 10.1017/S0033291717000125 . 28222824 . 5939988.
  14. Web site: When More Isn't Enough . D.J. . Moran . Jennifer L. . Patterson . Psychology Today . 16 June 2011.
  15. News: 'Cat Lady' Conundrum . Rebecca . Skloot . The New York Times . 9 December 2007 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20170118000720/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/09/magazine/09_10_catcoat.html . 18 January 2017.
  16. Weditor's Blog: Sally Quinn on Life in Grey Gardens . Sally . Quinn . Diane . Solway . https://web.archive.org/web/20110606155829/http://www.wmagazine.com/w/blogs/editorsblog/2009/04/08/sally-quinn.html . 6 June 2011 . . 8 April 2009.
  17. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/from-the-cbc-archives-winnipeg-s-cat-lady-bertha-rand-1.3265086 From the CBC archives: Winnipeg's cat lady Bertha Rand
  18. Web site: The Queen of Queen Street . Signature Editions . 25 February 2015.

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