“Baby It’s Cold Outside.” A classic Christmas song that seems creepier and creepier with each listen, especially with the recent sexual harassment allegations occurring in Hollywood and elsewhere. The song, originally written in 1944, was not meant to be taken in such a way. It started out as a tune about a budding winter romance but seems to have been interpreted into something darker.
The original version of the song was performed by the writer, Frank Loesser, and his wife at parties. He wrote the male part as the “wolf” and the female part as the “mouse”, which lends itself to being seen as a disturbing song. Of course, there is the possibility that those who believe it is a creepy song are reading too much into it.
“Why can’t it just be a good song? What’s wrong with people?” said senior Anders Pitcher.
However, there is no denying that the more you listen to the lyrics, the less it seems like an innocent love song. The lyrics “say, what’s in this drink?” have caused many questions about if it is implying that there is a date rape drug in the drink. Another questionable aspect of the lyrics is the multiple times the woman says “no.” She explicitly says “no” four times and the entire song is basically her trying to leave. A specific concern brought up with these lyrics is consent and the potential these lyrics have to skew what is and what is not consent.
“Why are people trying to make everything about sexual assault? It’s a classic Christmas song,” said senior Kayla Estes.
Regardless of the original intentions, there are a number of individuals that view the song’s moral as quite alarming. Others are firm believers that people are overreacting and the song is about nothing more than a little flirtation between a happy couple.
“It’s creepy and reminds me of stories I’ve heard a million times from women – stories about being pressured to do things they’re uncomfortable with,” said senior Jane Schwartz.