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{{Short description|Cultural archetype of a woman who owns many cats}}{{Other uses}}
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{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2023}}
A '''cat lady''' is a [[woman]], usually a [[spinster]],<ref>{{citation |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=RWqWq7v0WysC&pg=PA74 |title=Cat Women|author=Megan McMorris |page=74}}</ref> who dotes upon her [[cat]].<ref>{{citation |url=http://www.forbes.com/2009/10/14/crazy-cat-lady-pets-stereotype-forbes-woman-time-felines.html |title= Crazy Cat Ladies |author=Kiri Blakeley |date=15 Oct 2009}}</ref> The term is sometimes used in a pejorative sense, i.e. "crazy cat lady",<ref name="huso"> {{cite web | last = Huso| first = Deborah| authorlink = http://www.aolhealth.com/bio/deborah-huso| title = Some Live Among Hundreds of Cats | publisher = AOL Health | date = November 2009 | url = http://www.aolhealth.com/condition-center/mental-health/cat-lady | accessdate = November 2009}}</ref> to denote an [[Animal hoarding|animal hoarder]] who keeps large numbers of cats without having the ability to properly house or care for them.<ref>{{Citation| last = Davis| first = Susan| author-link = | last2 = Flaherty (illus)| first2 = Jake| author2-link = | title = Prosecuting Animal Hoarders is like Herding Cats| journal = California Lawyer| volume = | issue = September| pages = 26, 28, 29, 67| date = | year = 2002| url = http://www.tufts.edu/vet/cfa/hoarding/pubs/herdingcats.pdf| doi = | id = }}</ref>
[[File:Gattara.jpg|thumb|upright 1.2|A woman feeding cats in [[Rome]]]]


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 [[cat]]s. The term may be [[pejorative]], or it may be affectionately embraced.
==''Cat Ladies''==


==Usage and association==
The 2009 Documentary "Cat Ladies" tells the stories of four women whose lives have become dedicated to their cats. The film was directed by Christie Callan-Jones, and Produced by Chocolate Box Entertainment. Most notably, the film was an official selection at the 2009 Hot Docs Festival, Silverdocs Festival, and San Francisco's DocFest. The film was originally produced for [http://www.tvo.org TVO] (Television Ontario).<ref>catladiesdoc.com
[[File:An old lady is enraged when her cats disturb her stoking the Wellcome V0022915.jpg|thumb|''The old woman and her cats'', 1811 by [[Samuel Howitt]]]]
</ref> 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.<ref name="huso"/>
Women who have cats have long been associated with the concept of [[spinster]]hood, [[widow]]hood or even [[witchcraft]]. In more recent decades, the concept of a cat lady has been associated with "romance-challenged (often career-oriented) women".<ref name=Forbes /> The term "cat lady" has also been used as a pejorative term towards women [[Childlessness|without children]], regardless of if they actually own cats.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-08-01 |title=Opinion {{!}} How JD Vance plans to punish childless Americans |url=https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/jd-vances-childless-cat-lady-comment-isnt-even-worst-rcna164288 |access-date=2024-08-03 |website=MSNBC.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |title=The Weird Intellectual Roots of J.D. Vance's Hatred for "Cat Ladies" |url=https://newrepublic.com/article/184475/jd-vance-hates-childless-cat-ladies |access-date=2024-08-03 |magazine=The New Republic |issn=0028-6583}}</ref>


Depending on context, the ordinarily pejorative word "crazy" may be prepended to "cat lady" to indicate either a [[pejorative]]<ref name="Forbes">{{cite web |url=https://www.forbes.com/2009/10/14/crazy-cat-lady-pets-stereotype-forbes-woman-time-felines.html |title= Crazy Cat Ladies |first=Kiri |last=Blakeley |date=15 October 2009 |work=Forbes}}</ref> or a humorous and affectionate label.<ref name="timesunion.com">{{cite web |url=http://blog.timesunion.com/mydogbandit/do-you-believe-in-the-crazy-cat-lady/2080/ |title=Do you believe in the Crazy Cat Lady? |first=Mark |last=Ramirez |date=5 August 2009 |work=TimesUnion.com |access-date=30 November 2011 |archive-date=3 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203013716/http://blog.timesunion.com/mydogbandit/do-you-believe-in-the-crazy-cat-lady/2080/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite web |url= https://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/gossip/beth-ostrosky-stern-crazy-cat-lady-article-1.2361539 |title=Beth Ostrosky Stern: I am a crazy cat lady... and I'm proud of it |first=Nicki |last=Gostin |website=NYDailyNews.com |date=15 September 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url= https://www.mnn.com/family/pets/stories/its-time-to-smash-the-crazy-cat-lady-stereotype |title=It's time to smash the 'crazy cat lady' stereotype |website=MNN - Mother Nature Network}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/photos/meet-men-proud-crazy-cat-ladies-29245631/image-29246901 |last=Williams |first=David |title=Meet the Men Proud to Be Crazy Cat Ladies |work=ABC News |access-date=12 November 2015}}</ref> 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.<ref name="huso">{{cite web |last=Huso |first=Deborah |date=November 2009 |title=Some Live Among Hundreds of Cats |url=http://www.aolhealth.com/condition-center/mental-health/cat-lady |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091119071209/http://www.aolhealth.com/condition-center/mental-health/cat-lady |archive-date=19 November 2009 |work=AOL Health}}</ref> A cat lady may also be an [[Animal hoarding|animal hoarder]] who keeps large numbers of cats without having the ability to properly house or care for them.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Davis |first1=Susan |last2=Flaherty (illus.) |first2=Jake |date=September 2002 |title=Prosecuting Animal Hoarders is like Herding Cats |url=http://www.tufts.edu/vet/hoarding/pubs/herdingcats.pdf |url-status=dead |journal=California Lawyer |pages=26, 28, 29, 67 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100529081942/http://www.tufts.edu/vet/hoarding/pubs/herdingcats.pdf |archive-date=29 May 2010 |access-date=26 June 2011}}</ref>
=== Synopsis ===


==''Toxoplasma gondii''==
CAT LADIES is a one hour verité documentary that unravels the real story behind the oft-ridiculed 'cat lady' - a cultural stereotype and figure of ridicule for women of a certain age with too many furry companions. Through the intimate portrait of four unique 'cat ladies' we create a sensitive and emotionally honest portrait of women whose lives and self-worth have become intractably linked to cats.
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]],<ref name="The Atlantic">{{cite magazine |url= https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/03/how-your-cat-is-making-you-crazy/308873/ |title=How Your Cat Is Making You Crazy |first=Kathleen |last=McAuliffe |date=6 February 2012 |magazine=The Atlantic |access-date=3 June 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130603010600/http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/03/how-your-cat-is-making-you-crazy/308873/ |archive-date=3 June 2013}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Webster |first1=Joanne P. |last2=Kaushik |first2=Maya |last3=Bristow |first3=Greg C. |last4=McConkey |first4=Glenn A. |date=1 January 2013 |title=Toxoplasma gondii infection, from predation to schizophrenia: Can animal behaviour help us understand human behaviour? |journal=The Journal of Experimental Biology |volume=216 |issue=1 |pages=99–112 |doi=10.1242/jeb.074716 |issn=0022-0949 |pmc=3515034 |pmid=23225872}}</ref>
whereas other studies have showed that ''T. gondii'' is not a causative factor in later psychoses.<ref>{{Cite web |url= https://www.cnn.com/2017/02/21/health/cat-ownership-mental-health-study/index.html |title=Cat ownership not linked to mental health problems, study says |first=Johanzynn |last=Gatewood |website=CNN |date=22 February 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |title=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 |first1=F. |last1=Solmi |first2=J. F. |last2=Hayes|first3=G. |last3=Lewis |first4=J. B. |last4=Kirkbride |date=31 July 2017 |journal=Psychological Medicine |volume=47 |issue=9 |pages=1659–1667 |doi=10.1017/S0033291717000125 |pmid=28222824 |pmc=5939988}}</ref> The [[compulsive hoarding]] of cats, a symptom of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), has long been associated with "crazy cat ladies".<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/when-more-isnt-enough/201106/animal-hoarding-is-there-such-thing-the-crazy-cat-lady |title=When More Isn't Enough |first1=D.J. |last1=Moran |first2=Jennifer L. |last2=Patterson |work=Psychology Today |date=16 June 2011}}</ref> [[Toxoplasmosis#Society and culture|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.<ref name="The Atlantic" /><ref>{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/09/magazine/09_10_catcoat.html |title='Cat Lady' Conundrum |first=Rebecca |last=Skloot |newspaper=The New York Times |date=9 December 2007 |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170118000720/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/09/magazine/09_10_catcoat.html |archive-date=18 January 2017}}</ref>


==Notable examples==
It's not the number of cats that defines someone as a 'cat lady', but rather their attachment, or non-attachment, to human beings. They create a world with their cats in which they are accepted and in control - a world where they ultimately have value.
* [[Edith Ewing Bouvier]] and her daughter [[Edith Bouvier Beale]] had many cats living with them in their decrepit home [[Grey Gardens (estate)|Grey Gardens]]. Reportedly, some 30 cats lived in the house by the time [[Little Edie]] sold it in 1979.<ref>{{cite magazine |url= http://www.wmagazine.com/enwiki/w/blogs/editorsblog/2009/04/08/sally-quinn.html |first1=Sally |last1=Quinn |first2=Diane |last2=Solway |title=Weditor's Blog: Sally Quinn on Life in Grey Gardens |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110606155829/http://www.wmagazine.com/enwiki/w/blogs/editorsblog/2009/04/08/sally-quinn.html |archive-date=6 June 2011 |magazine=[[W magazine]] |date=8 April 2009}}</ref>
* Bertha Rand was [[Winnipeg]]'s notorious Cat Lady, who for years battled her neighbours and [[Town hall#Language|city hall]] to save her dozens of cats; even years after her death, she still holds a place in Canadian popular culture.<ref>[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]</ref> The [[Venetian Snares]] song ''For Bertha Rand'', from the 2001 album ''Songs About My Cats'', pays homage to her, and [[Maureen Hunter]]'s play ''The Queen of Queen Street'' is based on Rand's life.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.signature-editions.com/index.php/books/single_title/the_queen_of_queen_street |title=The Queen of Queen Street |work=Signature Editions |access-date=25 February 2015}}</ref>
* In the [[2024 United States presidential election|U.S. presidential election of 2024]], in an interview on "[[Fox and Friends]]", Republican vice presidential candidate [[J.D. Vance]] received pushback when he called the leadership of the country "a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives".


==In fiction==
==See also==
* [[Cat people and dog people]]
Examples of the stereotype in fictional works include:
* [[Pet humanization]]

* [[Eleanor Abernathy]] in [[The Simpsons]]
* [[Think Think and Ah Tsai]]
*[[Crazy Old Cat Lady]] in [[Codename: Kids Next Door]]
* a cat lady is one of the characters in the Japanese film Bokunchi - My House


==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}


==See also==
==External links==
{{commonscatinline}}
* [[Catgirl]]

* [[Catwoman]]
{{Stock characters}}
* [[Werecat]]


[[Category:Cats]]
[[Category:Cats]]
[[Category:Stereotypes of women]]
[[Category:Feminism and society]]
[[Category:Pejorative terms for women]]
[[Category:Female stock characters]]
[[Category:Cats in popular culture]]

Latest revision as of 13:18, 6 November 2024

For other uses, see Cat lady (disambiguation).

A woman feeding cats in Rome

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.

Usage and association

[edit]
The old woman and her cats, 1811 by Samuel Howitt

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".[1] The term "cat lady" has also been used as a pejorative term towards women without children, regardless of if they actually own cats.[2][3]

Depending on context, the ordinarily pejorative word "crazy" may be prepended to "cat lady" to indicate either a pejorative[1] 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

[edit]

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.[10][15]

Notable examples

[edit]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Blakeley, Kiri (15 October 2009). "Crazy Cat Ladies". Forbes.
  2. ^ "Opinion | How JD Vance plans to punish childless Americans". MSNBC.com. 1 August 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
  3. ^ "The Weird Intellectual Roots of J.D. Vance's Hatred for "Cat Ladies"". The New Republic. ISSN 0028-6583. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
  4. ^ Ramirez, Mark (5 August 2009). "Do you believe in the Crazy Cat Lady?". TimesUnion.com. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
  5. ^ Gostin, Nicki (15 September 2015). "Beth Ostrosky Stern: I am a crazy cat lady... and I'm proud of it". NYDailyNews.com.
  6. ^ "It's time to smash the 'crazy cat lady' stereotype". MNN - Mother Nature Network.
  7. ^ Williams, David. "Meet the Men Proud to Be Crazy Cat Ladies". ABC News. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  8. ^ Huso, Deborah (November 2009). "Some Live Among Hundreds of Cats". AOL Health. Archived from the original on 19 November 2009.
  9. ^ Davis, Susan; Flaherty (illus.), Jake (September 2002). "Prosecuting Animal Hoarders is like Herding Cats" (PDF). California Lawyer: 26, 28, 29, 67. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 May 2010. Retrieved 26 June 2011.
  10. ^ a b McAuliffe, Kathleen (6 February 2012). "How Your Cat Is Making You Crazy". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on 3 June 2013. Retrieved 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. doi:10.1242/jeb.074716. ISSN 0022-0949. PMC 3515034. PMID 23225872.
  12. ^ Gatewood, Johanzynn (22 February 2017). "Cat ownership not linked to mental health problems, study says". CNN.
  13. ^ Solmi, F.; Hayes, J. F.; Lewis, G.; Kirkbride, J. B. (31 July 2017). "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". Psychological Medicine. 47 (9): 1659–1667. doi:10.1017/S0033291717000125. PMC 5939988. PMID 28222824.
  14. ^ Moran, D.J.; Patterson, Jennifer L. (16 June 2011). "When More Isn't Enough". Psychology Today.
  15. ^ Skloot, Rebecca (9 December 2007). "'Cat Lady' Conundrum". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 18 January 2017.
  16. ^ Quinn, Sally; Solway, Diane (8 April 2009). "Weditor's Blog: Sally Quinn on Life in Grey Gardens". W magazine. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011.
  17. ^ From the CBC archives: Winnipeg's cat lady Bertha Rand
  18. ^ "The Queen of Queen Street". Signature Editions. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
[edit]

Media related to Cat ladies at Wikimedia Commons

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