Red Scare Canon — Cultural References from the Subreddit

Nathaniel Hawthorne (person) 1 — American author who was the subject of Melville's essay 'Hawthorne and His Mosses'.

Hawthorne and His Mosses (book) 1 — Essay by Herman Melville about Nathaniel Hawthorne that celebrates the eternal youth of the world and the inexhaustibili...

Nantucket (place) 1 — Massachusetts island referenced in Moby Dick where Captain Ahab first saw the sea as a boy.

Monoculture (concept) 1 — Cultural theory about homogeneous popular taste that some argue has died but others claim has only become more concentra...

Herpetology (concept) 1 — The study of reptiles and amphibians, discussed as a rewarding outdoor hobby involving searching for snakes, frogs, and ...

Steve Huffman (person) 1 — CEO of Reddit, mentioned sarcastically in a post praising Reddit's culture and interface

Roanoke Colony (concept) 1 — Lost 16th century English colony on the Outer Banks whose mysterious disappearance remains subject to speculation

Horatio Alger (person) 1 — Referenced as a symbol of bootstrapping individualism that socialists allegedly adopt when dismissing men's dating compl...

Wire (person) 1 — British post-punk band whose album Pink Flag was discovered by a listener while cleaning out their deceased godfather's ...

Pink Flag (album) 1 — Debut album by Wire featuring songs like 'Mannequin' and 'Three Girl Rhumba' that a listener finally experienced in full...

Ex Lion Tamer (album) 1 — Song by Wire from their album Pink Flag that was highlighted in a post about discovering the band's music.

Paris Fashion Week (place) 1 — Fashion event referenced as an aspirational endpoint for an underground merchandise scheme involving Gildan tees.

Gender Studies (concept) 1 — Academic field criticized for being a means to 'Trojan-Horse politics' rather than genuinely examining gender categories...

The Innocents (film) 1 — 1961 CinemaScope horror film recommended as one of the best uses of the format and thematically related to Epstein-era c...

r/historyporn (place) 1 — Subreddit where historical images are posted, including those of WWII civilian casualties that sometimes attract callous...

Dresden (place) 1 — German city whose bombing in WWII is invoked in discussions of collective punishment and civilian casualties.

Collective Punishment (concept) 1 — Concept criticized in relation to Reddit's tendency to assign guilt to entire populations for their government's actions...

Still Into You (album) 1 — Paramore song that served as a nostalgic reminder of a past relationship during a reunion.

Coco Gauff (person) 1 — American tennis player discussed as having achieved a significant victory against Sabalenka.

Sabalenka (person) 1 — Professional tennis player described as a formidable opponent of Coco Gauff.

Elizabeth Moss (person) 1 — Actress criticized for egotistical performance in the final season of The Handmaid's Tale with excessive close-ups.

Gringotts (place) 1 — The goblin-run bank in Harry Potter that is criticized for its antisemitic portrayal

The Flag (concept) 1 — An anti-war painting by Georgia O'Keeffe created in response to her brother's death in World War I

Govert Flinck (person) 1 — Student of Rembrandt whose works were stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in 1990

Kirsten Gillibrand (person) 1 — Politician compared to someone who becomes clingy after casual dating

Coriolanus Virus-19 (concept) 1 — Satirical reference to COVID-19 in a news roundup post discussing the pandemic's early impact.

Recipe Erdogan (person) 1 — Turkish leader (satirical name for Recep Tayyip Erdoğan) discussed in context of Syria conflict and Russia relations.

Joseph Robinette Biden (person) 1 — Democratic presidential candidate discussed in context of his nomination track and Iraq War responsibility.

Kate McKinnon (person) 1 — Upright Citizens Brigade alum praised by Elizabeth Warren in satirical news roundup.

Upright Citizen's Brigade (place) 1 — Sketch comedy institution referenced satirically as endorsed by Elizabeth Warren.

Babylonian Captivity (concept) 1 — Historical event referenced by Alex Jones as the origin of a globalist/Zionist conspiracy plot.

Corey Robin (person) 1 — Writer mentioned as an individual worth following despite dissatisfaction with major publications.

Motley Crue (album) 1 — Rock band identified as typical listening for hostile metalhead types who reject heavier music.

KISS (album) 1 — Rock band identified as typical listening for hostile metalhead types who reject heavier music.

Judas Priest (album) 1 — Heavy metal band referenced as possibly listened to by self-identified metalheads who don't actually like heavy music.

Grim Fandango (film) 1 — Video game referenced in an anecdote about a woman with a tattoo of its character despite never having played it

Manny Calavera (person) 1 — Character from the video game Grim Fandango that a woman had tattooed without having played the game

Santa (concept) 1 — Figure invoked ironically as alternative belief system to science

Red Sox (concept) 1 — Boston baseball team discussed in context of a historic 25-3 loss to the Blue Jays.

Book of Henry (film) 1 — Film cited as a prime example of media where the creator has questionable morals that are an extension of the artistic c...

Rūpintojėlis (concept) 1 — The Pensive Christ of Lithuanian folk culture, carved by wandering woodcarvers and representing a God who identifies wit...

Victoria Emily Jones (person) 1 — Author who wrote about the Pensive Christ of Lithuania, discussing how this figure represents a God who identifies with ...

Born In the USA (album) 1 — Album by Bruce Springsteen, marking the end of his core discography exploring the failure of the American Dream.

Ancient Greek (concept) 1 — Language studied in college by a poster who contrasts their ability to learn it versus French after getting a smartphone

Microsoft Word (concept) 1 — Word processing software that a poster struggles to use for creating tables at work

Jar Jar Binks (film) 1 — Controversial Star Wars character beloved by one fan for being a 'fun little fucking idiot freak.'

Trad-wife (concept) 1 — Online aesthetic and lifestyle adopted by women who present as traditional wives, often tied to right-wing social media ...

r/Anglish (place) 1 — Subreddit dedicated to Anglish, a constructed language of English using only Anglo-Saxon derived words.

Anglish (concept) 1 — A constructed language variant of English that excludes non-Anglo-Saxon derived words.

Waka Flocka Flame (person) 1 — Rapper whose song Grove St Party is cited as example of fun club music superior to modern hip hop.