Walrus or Fairy Debate

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toad-in-a-trenchcoat 601 Follow Mar 7 had to draw it While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came 9 slapping As of someone gently Flapping "Tis Flapping at my chamber door some Fairy," I muttered, Only this and nothing more." itch Htch " 'slapping at my chamber door- Quoth the walrus, "Are you sure."

them DUDE! Let me in! I'm a FAIRY! man щаст {K KNOCK? 3 n DON'T YOU Believe in fairies?

Every time a child says "I don't believe in walruses," there is a little walrus somewhere that falls down dead.

Basically, our reaction to a walrus knocking: ALT Vs misscrazyfangirl321 Follow A fairy knocking: ALT I didn't know he knew how to do that. You know those days when you're like "This might as well happen?"

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About

The Walrus or Fairy Debate is a viral debate started by Tumblr user baddywronglegs that asks whether you would be more surprised to find a walrus or a fairy at your doorstep. The debate was started in mid-February 2024 via a viral poll asking which participants would be more surprised by, with "walrus" winning out by a substantial margin. The debate inspired numerous responses, as well as memes and fan art, including artwork depicting walrus-fairy hybrids.

Origin

On February 19th, 2024, Tumblr^[1] user baddywronglegs posted a poll asking users whether they would be more surprised to find a walrus or a fairy on their doorstep, writing, "It is the middle of a Sunday afternoon. You have nothing on, and aren't expecting visitors, deliveries or post. Unexpectedly, there is a knock at the door." The poll gained over 110,000 notes and 165,000 responses in around two weeks, with "walrus" winning at roughly 80 percent of the vote (shown below).

baddywronglegs Follow I've asked this question before and been surprised by the results, now I have access to more weirdos it's your problem: 601 It is the middle of a Sunday afternoon. You have nothing on, and aren't expecting visitors, deliveries or post. Unexpectedly, there is a knock at the door. Which of these would surprise you more to find on the doorstep? Fairy Walrus Final result from 164,981 votes 19% 81%

Spread

The debate continued on Tumblr over the following weeks, also inspiring fan art and content. On February 25th, 2024, Tumblr^[2] user cycas posted a piece of artwork showing a person opening the door for both a fairy and a walrus, garnering over 3,900 notes in five days (shown below).

That same day, Tumblr^[3] user curiositypolling posted a new poll asking the same question but with more options, asking users whether or not they believe in fairies or magic and if that would alter their choice (shown below, left). The poll garnered over 48,000 responses and the walrus option won in both scenarios, whether the recipient believed in fairies and magic or not. The results of the chart were broken down into pie charts by baddywronglegs as a response to the post (shown below, right).

curiositypolling Follow I needed some clarification. would you be more surprised if you hear a knock at your door and open it to see a fairy or a walrus? And Do You Think A Fairy Is Something That Could Exist I believe fairies/magic might or do exist - fairy I believe fairies/magic might or do exist - walrus I don't believe fairies/magic exist in the slightest - fairy I don't believe fairies/magic exist in the slightest - walrus see results 48,035 votes • Remaining time: 2 days 2 hours 7.1% 29.5% 17% 42.8% 3.7%

75% 25% ■ Fairy more surprising ■ Walrus more surprising 62% 38% ■ Fairies exist ■ Fairies don't exist 72% 81% 19% 28%

On February 26th, Tumblr^[4] user prokopetz posted his opinion on the debate, claiming he'd be more surprised by the walrus regardless of his beliefs because "a fairy knocking on my door means I’ve made one bad assumption about how the world works; a walrus knocking on my door – in Saskatchewan, in February – means I’m wrong about a great many things," garnering over 14,000 notes in four days (shown below, left). Later that day, Tumblr^[5] user yaldabaothadeez posted a poem about the debate in the style of Edgar Allan Poe, garnering over 50,000 notes in the same span of time (shown below, right).

prokopetz Follow My take on the walrus knocking on your door versus a fairy knocking on your door thing is that I don't believe in magic or fairies whatsoever and I'd still be more surprised by the walrus. A fairy knocking on my door means I've made one bad assumption about how the world works; a walrus knocking on my door - in Saskatchewan, in February - means I'm wrong about a great many things. #tumblr #memes #walrus vs. fairy 14K notes

yaldabaothadeez Follow While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a slapping, As of some one gently flapping, flapping at my chamber door. “Tis some fairy," I muttered, “slapping at my chamber door- Only this and nothing more." Blaze : ...

On February 27th, 2024, Redditor u/NightmareChameleon made two posts to /r/CuratedTumblr^[6]^[7] sharing long-form screenshots of the debate, garnering over 6,000 upvotes and 900 upvotes respectively in three days. On February 28th, Redditor u/AngstyUchiha posted the Poe-style poem to /r/CuratedTumblr,^[8] garnering over 2,100 upvotes in two days.

That day, Tumblr^[9] user icarus-suraki posted a meme about the scenario that gained over 14,000 notes in two days (shown below).