Introduction

Before I assess what the manner is that audiences’ receptions to cat videos have remained the most consistent over time, it is crucial to understand how cats have been perceived in general, not just in the media but also in how people interact with cats in the real world. Such concepts that I felt were necessary to explore in my research prior to analyzing the videos themselves were ideas about how much of an emotional connection many people feel with cats compared to other animals such as dogs, the desire to pursue freedom and independence that watching cat videos inspires in viewers, and the ways that online content featuring cats have served as a form of an escape for audiences during times of despair and uncertainty.

Literature Review

Many people for decades, even predating the beginnings of the Internet, have admired cats and have expressed that admiration in mediums including paintings and poetry, but why are cats considered so appealing to such a large population? There are several reasons I have seen be used to argue this point, namely cats’ faces, the personalities of certain cats, and the often funny antics that we find ourselves laughing at when viewing cats, whether in real time or via a video or series of photos. However, one of the most critical points that I considered as I watched the videos that I later selected for my analysis lies in the notion that cats tend to be very independent. Some of them might appreciate a nice stroking on the backs of their heads or the opportunity to lay on one’s lap, but for the most part cats generally act independent and often make their own judgments and choices without the input of their human companions. It is for this reason that Monica Teresa Gonzalez-Ramirez and Rene Landero-Hernandez, the authors of the 2021 article ‘Pet-Human Relationships: Dogs versus Cats‘, argue that while the emotional connections that a sample of participants in a study in Mexico had with dogs were greater, those same participants had better relationships with cats due to how “the perceived cost of the relationship with cats is less” (Gonzalez-Ramirez and Landero-Hernandez, 2021). This concept of a smaller cost in taking care of a cat, which in turn means fewer concerns about the responsibilities of feeding and exercising a cat, suggests that a happier relationship tends to exist between humans and cats, as the humans are not as occupied with the responsibilities that would be significantly greater with taking care of a dog, whereas the cats gain more opportunities to pursue freedoms that, while not entirely independent from the environment and activities set up by their owners, usually still offer the sense of joy that the cats need in their lives (Gonzalez-Ramirez and Landero-Hernandez, 2021). 

This connection that is often made between cats and the concepts of freedom and a lack of concern about responsibilities is one that persists as we look at how cats on the Internet, specifically in cat videos, and how cats’ feelings towards being watched by humans reflect how we want to let go of the self-conscious feelings we often exhibit on social media. For most of us, when we take photos or record videos of ourselves, we are usually concerned with how we look, if we are speaking clearly enough, or what is in the background of the media that we create. The notion of being watched and being caught doing something embarrassing is one that often affects how we create content and our willingness to share our content with others. Cats, however, are not concerned with these matters. This lack of concern regarding surveillance is one that is highlighted in Radha O’Meara’s 2014 article ‘Do Cats Know They Rule YouTube? Surveillance and the Pleasures of Cat Videos‘, in which O’Meara highlights how the cats’ “lack of self-consciousness and sense of authenticity are the key to their reception as ‘cute videos’” (O’Meara, 2014).

Similarly, in the 2005 article ‘Internet’s Best Friend (Let Me Count the Ways)‘ by Sarah Boxer, we gain a clearer idea of how Internet users connect with cats. Unlike the ideas expressed in O’Meara’s article, which go into detail about the ways cats behave and how social media users generally wish they could be more confident in themselves, Boxer connects the behaviors of cats to how Internet users already behave (Boxer, 2005). Boxer describes cats as being just like bloggers, in the sense that just as countless pictures exist online of cats looking at pictures of other cats, bloggers often spend time reading others’ blogs (Boxer, 2005). This concept of cats being both unconcerned with how the world sees them and invested in images of each other is what leads Boxer to refer to cats as “the soul of the blogosphere” (Boxer, 2005).

These ideas continue to expand our view of why exactly many people, especially on the Internet, find cats so appealing. Instead of just being about how people tend to get along with cats because of the independent and relatively carefree nature, these ideas further expand into being about how we personify cats, often either because we see similarities between our own behaviors and how they behave, or how cats act in ways that we wish we could do just as easily.       

Further research suggests that cat-focused content on social media has also been integral to how viewers cope with outside crises and times of uncertainty. Elizabeth Bernstein, in her 2016 article ‘Bonds: On Relationships: Go Ahead, Silly Cat Videos Are Good for You’, refers to a study conducted by Dr. Jessica Myrick which revealed that participants who watched cat videos felt “significantly happier, more content and more energized” than they had felt prior to viewing the videos (Bernstein, 2016).

It would be easy to say that viewing cat videos could improve someone’s mood during a time of relative peace and stability in society. However, how could cat videos be significant in lightening the tone of a crisis? This concept is explored in Moa Eriksson Krutrok’s 2023 article ‘“Please. Do. Not. Share. Videos. Share. Cats.”.: Counteracting Terrorist and Violent Extremist Content on Twitter during Terrorist Attacks’, in which Krutrok goes into detail about how content such as cat memes and GIFs have become more relevant in recent times because of how they have been utilized as “countermeasures against terrorist propaganda” (Krutrok, 2023).

By examining the notion of cat-focused online content being used to counter feelings of fear and uncertainty, the idea of cats and how they affect us is brought to new heights. Our relationships with cats because of their feelings of being independent and seemingly carefree have resulted in many watching and connecting with social media content featuring cats. The growth of cat-focused social media content as a phenomenon is one that has led to such content even being able to inspire levity and hope during times of despair.

Method

First, I researched what the top ten most popular cat videos or cat video channels are on YouTube. I only focused on cat videos that were posted on YouTube because, while several other platforms have been utilized to post and view cat videos on them, cat videos have been regarded by many sources as being one of the most popular, if not the single most popular, subjects of YouTube videos. This idea, coupled with a clearer access to comments for each video, is why I solely focused on cat videos posted on YouTube. 

When I researched for my list of the top ten most popular cat videos, I only collected information from sources written in the past 5 years. This was so I could ensure any information I collected did not exclude any videos that would have risen to popularity in more recent years. Additionally, I searched for videos from a period of the last 19 years, as I wanted to ensure that older cat videos could potentially be added to my list.

When I finally gathered the list of videos that I watched, I not only watched the videos themselves, but I also analyzed the comments posted for each video. I only reviewed the comments written within the most recent 1-2 years of a comment being posted. For instance, if for an older video the most recent comment was posted 4 years ago, I only looked at the comments posted between 4 and 6 years ago. My goal was to learn about what qualities about cat videos have endured the most over time, and I wanted the set of comments, no matter how long after the video’s posting they have been sent, to reflect how viewers perceive the videos nowadays.

As I read the comments, I paid specific attention to the theme of the comment’s message, such as whether the person who wrote the comment was complimenting the cat featured in a given video, if the person addressed the cat as if the cat was another person or the creator of the video, or if the tone of the comment seemed to be self-deprecating. I kept a list of comments that were similar in theme or tone with each other, as well as information about the content of the videos that the comments were referring to. I did this so I could potentially recognize any patterns in the relationships between the types of comments written by the videos’ viewers and the content of the videos themselves. 

After I finally finished watching all of the videos and reading all of the videos’ respective comments, I read sources pertaining to theories by philosopher George Herbert Mead, specifically his concept of the ‘I’ and the ‘me’, so that I could better understand how individuals’ perceptions of content created by others, much like the notion of how relationships affect our behaviors and senses of self, affects how we create content, an issue that I felt was especially relevant to creators of cat videos who would likely be concerned about always appealing to their audiences (Aboulafia and Taylor, 2022).

Data Analysis

Based on my analysis of the ideas expressed in the vast majority of the comments from the sample I selected, I now argue that the most prevalent factor behind why cat videos have remained an iconic, popular subject to share on social media is the relationship between how we view cats and our understandings of our own senses of self. I utilized George Herbert Mead’s concept of the ‘I’ and the ‘me’ as a frame to analyze the content of the comments through, as the content of many of the comments centered on themes of self-identity and assigning a sense of identity to others (specifically cats), both of which tied very strongly to Mead’s concept (Aboulafia and Taylor, 2022). 

One set of data that I have become particularly intrigued by lies in the comments for the video ‘Last week’s recipe for you!’, a video posted on the YouTube channel about cat videos with the most subscribers, ‘That Little Puff’. In the comments that I analyzed, all of which were posted over the last 3 years, many of them focused on the topic of treating the cat in the video as if the cat was another human being. These comments included viewers complimenting the cat’s “really good cooking skills” and asking the cat, “Which recipe was your favorite?” (‘That Little Puff’, 2022).

 (‘That Little Puff’, 2022)

(‘That Little Puff’, 2022)

This recurring theme of personifying the cat as being capable of cooking leads me to recall the ideas of one such article written in 2005, Sarah Boxer’s ‘Internet’s Best Friend (Let Me Count the Ways)’, in which Boxer describes cats as being seen as relatable to bloggers and thus, “the soul of the blogosphere”, I argue that a major factor in the appeal of cat videos (based on the research I have conducted so far) is how content creators base videos around topics you ordinarily would not associate with cats (such as cooking) (Boxer, 2005). This in turn attracts audiences, who are able to recognize the “human” qualities of the cats’ personalities, thus forming a stronger emotional connection with the cats featured in the videos. 

(‘Kittisaurus’, 2021)

In a similar vein, a pair of comments for the video ‘Cats vs Dinosaur’, posted on the YouTube channel ‘Kittisaurus’ highlights the attachment of human thoughts and personalities to the cats featured in the video. In reference to the cats in the video being chased by someone in a dinosaur costume, one viewer wrote, “Cats: “I think our owner is a psychopath”.” (‘Kittisaurus’, 2021). Another viewer later replied to this comment by stating, “You mean: “I think our feeder is a clown. Maybe we should look for a new one.”” (‘Kittisaurus’, 2021). When reading these comments, what is the first thing you notice about them? Perhaps you might first notice the format of the “dialogue” that has been created for these cats, which might lead you to recall how many scripts for plays are formatted. You might also be thinking of how the two viewers have differing viewpoints on what the cats are actually thinking. Either of these conclusions would be valid, but what I recognize the most about these comments is the recurring theme of assigning cats a sense of identity not unlike those we strive to establish and build as humans. Not unlike how in a play, actors are assigned characters to portray who each have a certain number, or even lack, of lines, the viewers who wrote these comments assign the cats thoughts determined by the viewers themselves. Furthermore, the thoughts assigned to the cats by these two viewers reflect feelings of being uncomfortable, having contempt, and considering the abandonment of another person, all of which are feelings that are usually expressed in the context of humans’ desires and frustrations. I don’t argue against the notion of coming up with ideas about what our cats or any other animals might be thinking about, as it can be entertaining for ourselves and does not, to my knowledge, harm the cats or other animals in any way, but I feel that this desire to attach a set of opinions and a certain identity to these cats speaks to my larger argument about how the relationship between identity and cats online is the most enduring aspect of cat videos’ successes.       

(‘Kittisaurus’, 2020)

(‘Cat Man Chris’, 2020)

(‘Kittisaurus’, 2021) 

The themes of how we view our senses of self and create personalities similar to our own for cats continue to dominate the comments for both the ‘Cats vs Dinosaur’ video and the videos I watched next, including the video ‘Cats vs Racing Car’ (from ‘Kittisaurus’), ‘Big Cat Talk!- Roar, Purr, Meow’ (from ‘Cat Man Chris’), and ‘Why am I not at the Olympics?’ (from ‘CatPusic’). The comments for the videos included the statement ““On that day humanity received a grim reminder””, a viewer comparing a startled cat to how the viewer feels when seeing a spider nearby, and another viewer describing how the “other cats” have a “unique, nice roar” compared to the viewer’s more raspy “roar” (‘Cat Man Chris’, 2020; ‘Kittisaurus’, 2020; and ‘Kittisaurus’, 2021). In each comment, the concept becomes about more than just assigning more “human” thoughts and personalities to cats, but instead how the viewers writing the comments are comparing themselves or humanity to cats, whether that is in a positive or negative manner. The writers of these comments project not just any personality on the cats depicted in the videos, but often their own feelings and ideas. Regardless of if the intentions behind the comments were just supposed to be humorous or if they were actually reflecting deeper feelings of the writers of these comments and how they see themselves, the ideas expressed in these comments expand on the basic theme of assigning personalities to cats and bring me closer to the argument I make about our relationships with social media and the types of content that we produce and consume- that we produce and consume content because we see an aspect of ourselves that we want to share with others and, as I will elaborate on with the analysis of two of the comments posted for the video ‘Why am I not at the Olympics?’, because we see parts of ourselves that we wish to improve or feel we are lacking in growth in.

(‘CatPusic’, 2020)

(‘CatPusic’, 2022)

In two separate comments for ‘Why am I not at the Olympics?’, which features a cat repeatedly trying to walk on a treadmill, we see a trend take place in which the content of the comments reflect their respective writers’ implied lack of self-worth. For example, one writer describes the realization that “the cat still works out more” than oneself (‘CatPusic’, 2020). Furthermore, another writer concludes that the cat featured in the video “has more determination than I’ll ever have” (‘CatPusic’, 2022). If viewers such as those who wrote these comments feel inadequate compared to a cat, what does the desire to continue watching these videos say about the viewers’ relationship with this cat video?

Tying the comments on this video to the ideas of philosopher George Herbert Mead, we can tell how the implications of the comments, that the viewers writing the comments feel insecure about their respective physical health and feeling of determination, connect with Mead’s ideas of oneself being “linked to self-consciousness” and “developing when individuals interact with others” (Aboulafia and Taylor, 2022). Specifically, Mead examined the concept of the “I” and the “me”, which are how a person reflects upon one’s actions and how a person defines oneself based on the person’s relationships with others, respectively (Aboulafia and Taylor, 2022). With Mead’s ideas in mind, we can apply them to the content of not just the comments posted for ‘Why am I not at the Olympics?’, but also for all of the comments that I have analyzed. In every comment I have described, the simple act of comparison is taking place, whether that is between what a cat might be feeling and how a human would feel in a given situation, how a human and a cat might react similarly to an event taking place, and how a person might feel self-conscious or even envious of how a cat is handling a particular conflict. All of these comments are, to various degrees, rooted in the habit many of us possess of comparing ourselves and our value to others, in some cases comparing our current behaviors with behaviors we recognize others practicing, while in other cases comparing ourselves to those we feel we are, on some level, inferior to. Mead’s ideas express an understanding for how one develops feelings of self-consciousness and why such feelings are necessary to have when comprising one’s sense of self, but Mead also expresses an understanding that the “I”, our own views and understandings of ourselves separate from the influences of relationships with others, is equally important, for a persona defined entirely by self-consciousness with no consideration for the “I” leaves no room for an individual to reflect on one’s own behaviors and thus, no opportunity for that individual to grow as a person (Aboulafia and Taylor, 2022).      

Conclusions

With Mead’s ideas and the content of the comments I collected in my research in mind, what can we learn from audiences’ relationships with cat videos in order to better understand our relationship with social media as a whole? 

First, it is helpful to understand how cats typically behave compared to humans. Many humans, especially those of us who create social media content, are concerned to some degree about how we are presenting ourselves to our audiences. Questions such as “How do I look?”, “Am I pronouncing this word correctly and clearly enough?”, and “Is the background of my photo or video too blurry?” often become what we most focus on when creating content, as opposed to the sense of joy and wonder that can arise from sharing parts of ourselves with others. Cats, by contrast, do not care about such matters. When we recall the ideas expressed in Radha O’Meara’s article, we will notice that O’Meara described cats as having a “lack of self-consciousness” and instead possessing a “sense of authenticity” that is considered appealing to so many audiences (O’Meara, 2014). 

Cat videos, in my view, are seen as interesting and rewatchable to audiences not just because many of them are cute or funny, though those might be reasons one would likely point to for enjoying cat videos, but because they reveal some form of truth about how we perceive our own identities. Do we see ourselves more in the cat running away from a toy offered by a human or do we envy the cat that manages to work out and stay physically fit for hours afterwards? Do we recognize our own fears and insecurities in the cat that hides under the dining table, nervous about what lies in the world around the cat, or do we wish we could have as much tenacity as the cat who fights his siblings for the food he craves so deeply?

When we see cat videos, more often than not, we are viewing reflections of ourselves. For many of us, we try to motivate ourselves every morning to do the very best we can at work, classes, and the other activities and roles that we participate in and fill. Despite having the ambitions that we so desperately want to pursue, many of us, especially content creators, feel that such ambitions are unattainable and that we will remain stuck in the shadows of other people who have seemingly accomplished more than we will ever accomplish in our lifetimes. However, as Mead suggests, if all we focus on is the self-consciousness that comes with the “Me” aspect of the human psyche, we will risk forgetting to also focus on the “I”, which centers on our abilities to reflect on our behaviors as well as our “spontaneity and creativity” (Aboulafia and Taylor, 2022). We often see parts of our current selves or ways we would like to improve ourselves in the many cats that have starred in countless videos, but I suggest that it is the lack of regard cats have for being praised or rejected by audiences that we should emulate the most. Instead of fretting about not gaining enough subscribers, views, and “likes”, we should make an effort to create content that we personally find pleasing and communicates aspects of ourselves in a manner that is perhaps even more sincere than the joy expressed by a kitten staring up at the world around her with her large, brightly colored eyes for the first time.   

Works Cited

Aboulafia, M. and Taylor S. (2022). “George Herbert Mead”. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, (Winter 2022 ed.), Edward N. Zalta and Uri Nodelman (eds.), https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/mead/#IMe.

Bernstein, E. (2016, October 5). Bonds: On Relationships: Go Ahead, Silly Cat Videos Are Good for You. Wall Street Journal. (Eastern ed.). https://www.proquest.com/docview/1825767300/97EBA2B53D1742F7PQ/2?sourcetype=Newspapers.

Boxer, S. (2005, July 30). Internet’s Best Friend (Let Me Count the Ways). The New York Times. (Late ed., East Coast). https://www.proquest.com/docview/433107439/fulltext/C9811E971B634247PQ/1?accountid=7092&sourcetype=Newspapers.

‘Cat Man Chris’. (29 December, 2016). Big Cat Talk!- Roar, Purr, Meow [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjOi99xY_10&t=10s.

‘CatPusic’. (18 May, 2018). Why am I not at the Olympics? [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mfi0NMtfUzI.

Gonzalez-Ramirez, Monica Teresa and Landero-Hernandez, Rene. (2021). Pet-Human Relationships: Dogs versus Cats. Animals, 11(9), 7. https://www.proquest.com/docview/2576377344/fulltextPDF/90D379AFBE39476BPQ/1?accountid=7092&sourcetype=Scholarly%20Journals.

‘Kittisaurus’. (2019, December 14). Cats vs Dinosaur | Kittisaurus [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saZFIuXU5W8.

‘Kittisaurus’. (2020, January 15). Cats vs Racing Car | Kittisaurus [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4JtY6NvwgU&t=66s.

Krutrok, Moa Eriksson. (2023). “Please. Do. Not. Share. Videos. Share. Cats.”: Counteracting Terrorist and Violent Extremist Content on Twitter during Terrorist Attacks. Journalism and Media, 4(1), 368. https://www.proquest.com/docview/2791664948/fulltextPDF/3BF8C70496A4C4EPQ/1?accountid=7092&sourcetype=Scholarly%20Journals.

O’Meara, R. (2014). Do Cats Know They Rule YouTube? Surveillance and the Pleasures of Cat Videos. M/C Journal, 17(2). https://journal.media-culture.org.au/index.php/mcjournal/article/view/794.

‘That Little Puff’. (2021, March 16). Last week’s recipe for you! [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojf_PXiI7xI.