Feature image of Xiaohongshu Literature: The Viral Internet Major You Didn’t Know You Needed

Xiaohongshu Literature: The Viral Internet Major You Didn’t Know You Needed

2 mins read

2 mins read

Feature image of Xiaohongshu Literature: The Viral Internet Major You Didn’t Know You Needed
Even with cited references, posts with similar clickbait-style headlines have gone viral on Xiaohongshu as a way of ironic self-expression.

“After realizing I am human, I cried for the whole afternoon…” Seeing a Xiaohongshu post with a title like this, paired with an AI-generated rat image, you might be asking yourself: what on earth is going on? Clicking into the full post, you’ll find this is just another creature of the “Abstract Internet” (抽象文化) culture trend.

The rat is a saphircal of a rat discovering it being a human. Photo via Xiaohongshu.
A generated rat discovering that it is, in fact, a “human.” Photo via Xiaohongshu.

Similar posts are flooding Xiaohongshu. People claim they cried after discovering they are human, or American, or from Henan, or even a spotted dove. The whole joke here is about having an “11.45% DNA test result” for these identities, and using it as a starting point to throw out stereotypes that might feel too blunt to say in daily conversations. For example, being laid-back and always in a hoodie because you’re from “Southern California.”

Screenshot of one of the reference list of a blogger in Paris.
Screenshot of one of the reference list of a blogger in Paris.

Users went wild with this trend, even going the lengths of creating APA-style reference lists for every post that inspired them, tracing the lineage all the way back to the original viral post about discovering oneself as Northern European.

After knowing I am Northern European, I cried for the whole afternoon.
After knowing I am Northern European, I cried for the whole afternoon.

But identity discovery isn’t the only genre of Xiaohongshu literature. Another popular one is the “xxx ruins my daughter” template. The original post appeared right before the National Judicial Exam (法考)—China’s bar exam for future lawyers. In that post, the blogger wrote in third person, dramatizing her study process in an over-the-top, self-mocking way. The style later evolved into expressing obsessive passion for hobbies like birdwatching or fandom for the likes of Chiikawa (ちいかわ, a Japanese mascot character).

An AIGC image with the title - "She even studies ancient literature". Photo via Xiaohongshu.
An AIGC image with the title – “She even studies ancient literature”. Photo via Xiaohongshu.

Similar micro-genres of “literature” keep emerging on Xiaohongshu. Assisted by AIGC images, netizens pour their creativity into these text-image performances. Whether ironically or sincerely, “Xiaohongshu Literature” feels ready to be treated as a university major—something readers could analyze for its hidden life lessons and the genealogy of its meme templates.

Cover image via Xiaohongshu.

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Feature image of Xiaohongshu Literature: The Viral Internet Major You Didn’t Know You Needed

Xiaohongshu Literature: The Viral Internet Major You Didn’t Know You Needed

2 mins read

Even with cited references, posts with similar clickbait-style headlines have gone viral on Xiaohongshu as a way of ironic self-expression.

“After realizing I am human, I cried for the whole afternoon…” Seeing a Xiaohongshu post with a title like this, paired with an AI-generated rat image, you might be asking yourself: what on earth is going on? Clicking into the full post, you’ll find this is just another creature of the “Abstract Internet” (抽象文化) culture trend.

The rat is a saphircal of a rat discovering it being a human. Photo via Xiaohongshu.
A generated rat discovering that it is, in fact, a “human.” Photo via Xiaohongshu.

Similar posts are flooding Xiaohongshu. People claim they cried after discovering they are human, or American, or from Henan, or even a spotted dove. The whole joke here is about having an “11.45% DNA test result” for these identities, and using it as a starting point to throw out stereotypes that might feel too blunt to say in daily conversations. For example, being laid-back and always in a hoodie because you’re from “Southern California.”

Screenshot of one of the reference list of a blogger in Paris.
Screenshot of one of the reference list of a blogger in Paris.

Users went wild with this trend, even going the lengths of creating APA-style reference lists for every post that inspired them, tracing the lineage all the way back to the original viral post about discovering oneself as Northern European.

After knowing I am Northern European, I cried for the whole afternoon.
After knowing I am Northern European, I cried for the whole afternoon.

But identity discovery isn’t the only genre of Xiaohongshu literature. Another popular one is the “xxx ruins my daughter” template. The original post appeared right before the National Judicial Exam (法考)—China’s bar exam for future lawyers. In that post, the blogger wrote in third person, dramatizing her study process in an over-the-top, self-mocking way. The style later evolved into expressing obsessive passion for hobbies like birdwatching or fandom for the likes of Chiikawa (ちいかわ, a Japanese mascot character).

An AIGC image with the title - "She even studies ancient literature". Photo via Xiaohongshu.
An AIGC image with the title – “She even studies ancient literature”. Photo via Xiaohongshu.

Similar micro-genres of “literature” keep emerging on Xiaohongshu. Assisted by AIGC images, netizens pour their creativity into these text-image performances. Whether ironically or sincerely, “Xiaohongshu Literature” feels ready to be treated as a university major—something readers could analyze for its hidden life lessons and the genealogy of its meme templates.

Cover image via Xiaohongshu.

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Feature image of Xiaohongshu Literature: The Viral Internet Major You Didn’t Know You Needed

Xiaohongshu Literature: The Viral Internet Major You Didn’t Know You Needed

2 mins read

2 mins read

Feature image of Xiaohongshu Literature: The Viral Internet Major You Didn’t Know You Needed
Even with cited references, posts with similar clickbait-style headlines have gone viral on Xiaohongshu as a way of ironic self-expression.

“After realizing I am human, I cried for the whole afternoon…” Seeing a Xiaohongshu post with a title like this, paired with an AI-generated rat image, you might be asking yourself: what on earth is going on? Clicking into the full post, you’ll find this is just another creature of the “Abstract Internet” (抽象文化) culture trend.

The rat is a saphircal of a rat discovering it being a human. Photo via Xiaohongshu.
A generated rat discovering that it is, in fact, a “human.” Photo via Xiaohongshu.

Similar posts are flooding Xiaohongshu. People claim they cried after discovering they are human, or American, or from Henan, or even a spotted dove. The whole joke here is about having an “11.45% DNA test result” for these identities, and using it as a starting point to throw out stereotypes that might feel too blunt to say in daily conversations. For example, being laid-back and always in a hoodie because you’re from “Southern California.”

Screenshot of one of the reference list of a blogger in Paris.
Screenshot of one of the reference list of a blogger in Paris.

Users went wild with this trend, even going the lengths of creating APA-style reference lists for every post that inspired them, tracing the lineage all the way back to the original viral post about discovering oneself as Northern European.

After knowing I am Northern European, I cried for the whole afternoon.
After knowing I am Northern European, I cried for the whole afternoon.

But identity discovery isn’t the only genre of Xiaohongshu literature. Another popular one is the “xxx ruins my daughter” template. The original post appeared right before the National Judicial Exam (法考)—China’s bar exam for future lawyers. In that post, the blogger wrote in third person, dramatizing her study process in an over-the-top, self-mocking way. The style later evolved into expressing obsessive passion for hobbies like birdwatching or fandom for the likes of Chiikawa (ちいかわ, a Japanese mascot character).

An AIGC image with the title - "She even studies ancient literature". Photo via Xiaohongshu.
An AIGC image with the title – “She even studies ancient literature”. Photo via Xiaohongshu.

Similar micro-genres of “literature” keep emerging on Xiaohongshu. Assisted by AIGC images, netizens pour their creativity into these text-image performances. Whether ironically or sincerely, “Xiaohongshu Literature” feels ready to be treated as a university major—something readers could analyze for its hidden life lessons and the genealogy of its meme templates.

Cover image via Xiaohongshu.

NEWSLETTER

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Feature image of Xiaohongshu Literature: The Viral Internet Major You Didn’t Know You Needed

Xiaohongshu Literature: The Viral Internet Major You Didn’t Know You Needed

2 mins read

Even with cited references, posts with similar clickbait-style headlines have gone viral on Xiaohongshu as a way of ironic self-expression.

“After realizing I am human, I cried for the whole afternoon…” Seeing a Xiaohongshu post with a title like this, paired with an AI-generated rat image, you might be asking yourself: what on earth is going on? Clicking into the full post, you’ll find this is just another creature of the “Abstract Internet” (抽象文化) culture trend.

The rat is a saphircal of a rat discovering it being a human. Photo via Xiaohongshu.
A generated rat discovering that it is, in fact, a “human.” Photo via Xiaohongshu.

Similar posts are flooding Xiaohongshu. People claim they cried after discovering they are human, or American, or from Henan, or even a spotted dove. The whole joke here is about having an “11.45% DNA test result” for these identities, and using it as a starting point to throw out stereotypes that might feel too blunt to say in daily conversations. For example, being laid-back and always in a hoodie because you’re from “Southern California.”

Screenshot of one of the reference list of a blogger in Paris.
Screenshot of one of the reference list of a blogger in Paris.

Users went wild with this trend, even going the lengths of creating APA-style reference lists for every post that inspired them, tracing the lineage all the way back to the original viral post about discovering oneself as Northern European.

After knowing I am Northern European, I cried for the whole afternoon.
After knowing I am Northern European, I cried for the whole afternoon.

But identity discovery isn’t the only genre of Xiaohongshu literature. Another popular one is the “xxx ruins my daughter” template. The original post appeared right before the National Judicial Exam (法考)—China’s bar exam for future lawyers. In that post, the blogger wrote in third person, dramatizing her study process in an over-the-top, self-mocking way. The style later evolved into expressing obsessive passion for hobbies like birdwatching or fandom for the likes of Chiikawa (ちいかわ, a Japanese mascot character).

An AIGC image with the title - "She even studies ancient literature". Photo via Xiaohongshu.
An AIGC image with the title – “She even studies ancient literature”. Photo via Xiaohongshu.

Similar micro-genres of “literature” keep emerging on Xiaohongshu. Assisted by AIGC images, netizens pour their creativity into these text-image performances. Whether ironically or sincerely, “Xiaohongshu Literature” feels ready to be treated as a university major—something readers could analyze for its hidden life lessons and the genealogy of its meme templates.

Cover image via Xiaohongshu.

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Feature image of Xiaohongshu Literature: The Viral Internet Major You Didn’t Know You Needed

Xiaohongshu Literature: The Viral Internet Major You Didn’t Know You Needed

Even with cited references, posts with similar clickbait-style headlines have gone viral on Xiaohongshu as a way of ironic self-expression.

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