The word “viral” usually describes a phenomenon that has been shared collectively, “contaminating” society quite quickly, like a virus. Memes are the biggest examples we have of viral content, and their existence is restricted to the digital realm.
But long before the internet, we already had events that went viral among people. In this text, we bring 4 examples of how this happened.
1. Dance competitions during the Great Depression
(Source: History Daily)
Throughout the American Great Depression, the great economic crisis that broke the United States, many people had to undergo various things to earn some money. An example of this was the dance marathons, in which the competitors submitted to exhausting journeys in exchange for some prize in value, food or even publicity.
The rules of these competitions focused very little on dance quality: the main objective was to expend as little energy as possible to remain standing and moving for many hours. Competitors were entitled to a few minutes’ break in which they could sleep, but many ended up dozing standing up and were disqualified.
There was a lot of questioning about how ethical it was to subject indigent people to this type of action. situation, which made the dance competitions disappear little by little. At the end of the Second World War, they were practically extinct.
2. The Goldfish Fashion
(Source: Smithsonian Mag)
In 1939, a Harvard freshman named Lothrop Withington Jr. boasted to his friends that he had swallowed a goldfish alive. His friends didn’t believe it, and they bet 10 dollars that he wouldn’t do it again. Young Lothrop didn’t want to give his arm, and performed the infamous performance in front of his friends.
What perhaps no one imagined is that this silly joke would become a fever among university students across the country. On March 3, 1939, a crowd of students gathered to see Lothrop Withington beat his record for “the world’s biggest goldfish swallower” – a post in which he was quickly eluded by other competitors. Lothrop, however, came to star in advertising campaigns because of this feat.
3. The fashion of pulling hats off others’ heads
(Source: UTA Libraries)
During the 19th century, many men wore straw hats in summer, especially at events that take place near the sea or rivers. Normally, it was stated that it would be until September 1st that Straw Hats would be “allowed” (later the date was changed to September 15th). After this day, men were expected to wear thicker hats to protect their heads.
Because of this, a tradition called “Felt Hat Day” began to spread. According to this rite, men who wore straw hats were likely to have them taken off by random people. At first it was all a big joke, but when strangers increasingly started pulling hats off of strangers, the result was increased violence and rioting.
4. The Christmas Riots
(Source : Bowery Boys History)
Although Christmas is known as a time of celebration and family reunion, the festive date was once known especially as a time of year when there were many riots in the streets, with drunken brawls and widespread crime in the streets. As a result, many places criminalized Christmas.
In the 1600s, the Massachusetts Bay Colony considered the date criminal – taking less into account religious traditions and more an attempt to escape the disorder and the crime wave. This was because men and women – especially singles – saw the Christmas holiday as a time to go crazy, like a carnival. Young people got drunk, dressed as a woman, wore masks or did
