The Fascination of Abby Brown
An explanation as to why a community of people are so interested in Abby
Embedded Files
One of the things that hasn't been explained very well is the fascination that people have with this small town girl. There are forum posts and communities dedicated and devoted to the following of Abby, and people get sucked into the idea of Abby so easily. I have found myself staying up into the bright hours of the morning completely manic because I found myself tumbling into the Brown Hole. Everyone that I've spoken to about this girl, however, don't really understand the borderline obsession. There are many theories as to why Abby is so captivating, so this is why I decided to lay out these theories and reasons.
She's a blast from the past.
She's a blast from the past.
Several times a week I see posts in the Facebook community of people posting their own Abby-esque pictures that they took in their bathrooms using their mom's digital camera back in 2007. They all talk about how embarrassing it was to present themselves this way, and talk about the similarities between their old scene and emo phases to the phase that Abby is going through at the time of their posting. It's a weird sort of nostalgia that brings you back to simpler, yet cringey times. Maybe I'm overthinking it, but I believe majority of the people that find themselves immersed into Abby is because it just reminds them of those memories of teasing your hair in the bathroom for an hour before school, and making sure your electric neon outfit was coordinated but never matched. The memories of Myspace and finding other alternative kids with thousands of friends and aspiring to be like them. The battle over the titles King and Queen when it came to being part of a stereotype. Some people were unfortunate to be old enough to have permanent reminders of this phase in ink on their skin. I think that Abby is a virtual reminder of these times. She's a small-town girl who is going through phases that so many of us have been through. She's a relatable public figure that is the essence of these times from ten years ago.
She's cringey.
She's cringey.
It's difficult to navigate through social media sharing websites without seeing the word cringe. It's a mixture of disgust, interest, and pity that many of us have felt at some point in our lives. Whether it's when we're lying awake at three in the morning and remembering the time that you made a stupid joke in front of the cashier, or we're watching Scott's Tots (a summarized video is posted on the right for those who haven't seen it, but I urge that you watch the entire episode to really understand what true cringe is). For some reason, our society is obsessed with cringe.
She might be an elaborate artist.
She might be an elaborate artist.
There have been speculations of Abby being an elaborate performance artist. Although she's been spotted in public wearing the same clothes that she poses in for her photos, lots of proof points towards the idea that Abby is just a performance artist. Her parents and boyfriend are the ones that take photos for her, her parents are the ones that fund her strange fashion habits; it points towards this idea that this is just a ruse.
She's a controversial person.
She's a controversial person.
See: Controversies.
If Abby was a genuinely good person, then I don't think people would be so invested in her. Sure, she's goofy and has her pictures and videos reposted on meme pages, but if she was a wholesome person then there wouldn't have been as much traction. Since discovering that she is a scummy person I think more people have gotten themselves invested into her. It's like a little self esteem boost. "Hey, I might be unemployed and have no friends, but at least I'm not Abby Brown."
Google Sites
Report abuse