Red Scare Canon — Cultural References from the Subreddit

Sleater-Kinney (person) 4 — A band featuring Janet Weiss on drums, mentioned in an appreciation post for female drummers.

Saving Private Ryan (film) 4 — Anti-war film whose release paradoxically led to a huge increase in military enrollment comparable to the propaganda fil...

The Long Goodbye (book) 4 — A 1960s/70s classic film distinguished by sound design that uses noise at various distances to evoke immediate surroundi...

Deleuze (person) 4 — French philosopher whose work is questioned for being obscured by jargon and potentially reducing to obvious ideas about...

Keith Haring (person) 4 — 80s New York artist criticized for producing 'shitty stick and poke' doodles associated with gay PREP culture and middle...

Staten Island (place) 4 — New York borough referenced in description of viral video content featuring an Italian gay man.

Amelie (film) 4 — French film referenced as comparison to someone leaving whimsical origami tips at restaurants

The Brutalist (film) 4 — A film that occasionally feels derivative of There Will Be Blood, featuring Guy Pearce in a role that evokes comparisons...

Sheryl Crow (person) 4 — Musician praised ironically for her song lyrics including 'Everyday Is a Winding Road' and 'The First Cut Is the Deepest...

AMC (place) 4 — Movie theater chain referenced as an example of a business that cannot charge customers retroactively after service, unl...

Colin Farrell (person) 4 — Actor who used prosthetics in The Penguin, referenced in discussion about casting conventionally attractive actors in ro...

Michael Gira (person) 4 — Musician with an anomalously lengthy creative career spanning nearly 50 years, discussed as exceptional in maintaining a...

Death In June (person) 4 — Musical group mentioned in context of elite high school student listening habits.

Gabriel García Márquez (person) 4 — Author of 100 Years of Solitude, whose work fans fear will be misunderstood by mainstream Netflix audiences who think he...

Julia Louis-Dreyfus (person) 4 — Actress who played Elaine on Seinfeld and is discussed as looking hotter with straight hair despite her character lookin...

A Confederacy of Dunces (book) 4 — A novel that a user ordered but received The Master and the Margarita instead, prompting reflection on serendipitous boo...

Anti-Oedipus (book) 4 — A philosophical work by Deleuze and Guattari that introduces concepts like 'bodies without organs' and is referenced as ...

Alice Coltrane (person) 4 — Jazz musician whose song 'Keshava Murahara' was cited as the best song discovered by a poster in 2021.

Caroline Polachek (person) 4 — Musical artist noted for effortlessly hitting high notes while performing in knee high boots on stage.

Danny Brown (person) 4 — Contemporary rapper cited as example of modern artists being elevated to status of 1970s legends

Purple Mountains (album) 4 — Album featuring the song "All My Happiness is Gone," created by an artist who died after struggling with personal demons...

Oliver Cromwell (person) 4 — Historical figure invoked in critique of British monarchy, referenced as someone who should save the British from their ...

Thelma and Louise (film) 4 — Film referenced as example of how women with guns can stop male violence, specifically a rape scene where Susan Sarandon...

Simulacra and Simulation (book) 4 — Baudrillard's postmodernist philosophical work that served as a cultural signifier impressing a law student on a Tinder ...

Evelyn Waugh (person) 4 — Literary Catholic author admired by someone who wishes they could believe in God.

100 gecs (person) 4 — Contemporary music act cited as example of Gen Z nostalgia culture, described as a melding of previous genres.

Lucy Letby (person) 4 — A convicted person whose guilt is strongly believed by British people, with controversy arising from a New Yorker articl...

Glamorama (book) 4 — A novel by Bret Easton Ellis described as the poster's favorite of his works, compared to Pynchon for oversexed yuppies.

Surrealism (concept) 4 — An artistic and philosophical movement discussed in relation to André Breton's provocative statement about violence as a...

Dave Eggers (person) 4 — Contemporary American author criticized for saccharine writing and exploitation of goodwill through writing schools/afte...

Margin Call (film) 4 — Financial crisis film discussed as being misinterpreted by Reddit as a defense of the financial industry rather than a c...

Trailer Park Boys (film) 4 — A TV show that the poster attempted to introduce to one-night stands at 4am, presented as a spiritual accomplishment.

Finnegans Wake (book) 4 — James Joyce's experimental novel that took 17 years to write, referenced in speculation about what Joyce would do today.

Svetlana Alexievich (person) 4 — Author who collected oral histories of women in World War II that continue to profoundly affect readers' understanding o...

Story of the Eye (book) 4 — Controversial novel by Georges Bataille that the poster laments being unable to discuss with anyone

Jason Statham (person) 4 — Actor referenced as a physical aesthetic that Andrew Tate allegedly emulated through expensive makeover procedures.

Beatles (album) 4 — Legendary band whose biopic casting is criticized for prioritizing popular actors over quality.

311 (concept) 3 — A service number that directs to resources, mentioned in context of helping a homeless person find shelter in New York.

Sarco suicide pod (concept) 3 — Swiss assisted-dying device that allegedly malfunctioned during its first use, with the CEO accused of strangling the us...

Bourgeois Neoliberal Feminism (concept) 3 — Implicitly referenced through description of corporate feminist boss who claims to support female empowerment but discri...

Third Worldism (concept) 3 — Maoist political theory that viewing bourgeoisie exploitation in developing countries can radicalize people toward

ELF (concept) 3 — Environmental Liberation Front, radical environmental group that Greta Thunberg might end up heading

Geneva Convention (concept) 3 — International humanitarian law that the Israeli ambassador to UK stated does not apply to Palestinians

Utah State (place) 3 — University where the author's parents met in a masters program, mentioned as background context for their educational ex...

Lilo & Stitch (film) 3 — Disney film whose 2025 remake depicts Nani giving up custody of Lilo for college, criticized as promoting hyper-individu...

Ithaca (place) 3 — Classical Greek location referenced in a satirical post comparing modern dating dynamics to the myth of Odysseus and Pen...

Trevor Noah (person) 3 — Comedian and author whose memoir 'Born a Crime' was assigned as required reading in high school English classes

Aretha Franklin (person) 3 — Legendary soul singer quoted in criticism of Taylor Swift's Grammy wins

Beetlejuice (film) 3 — Tim Burton film watched at a drive-in when a dog escaped during a bathroom break

Hozier (person) 3 — Irish musician whose songs were described as 'ubiquitous chintzy background music' while impressing someone hearing them...