Happy National Mad Hatter Day! On October 6th, today is a day set aside each year to bring out your silly side by pretending to be as mad as a hatter.
The fictional character, The Hatter (also known as The Mad Hatter) is typically acting silly, and that is how the creators of this day decided on their theme of silliness for National Mad Hatter Day.
The Hatter derived from English writer of world-famous children's fiction Charles Lutwidge Dodgson's (Lewis Carroll) 1865 literary nonsense/fantasy/fantastique/absurdist fiction novel Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
English illustrator, graphic humorist, and political cartoonist Sir John Tenniel illustrated The Mad Hatter and all of Carroll’s other colorful characters beginning in 1864.
Today, "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" ranks ninth among literary works by the number of languages of which they have been translated into, being one hundred and seventy-four.
The phrase “mad as a hatter” comes from the late 18th and early 19th centuries when haberdasheries used mercury nitrate.
The exposure to this soluble metal over time is associated with the tradesmen to develop a psychological illness brought on by excessive exposure symptoms to the mercury nitrate, making people believe that they were mad.
Taking our inspiration from The Mad Hatter (or any of Carroll’s characters for that matter), we may pursue laughable, absurd or even confusing adventures on National Mad Hatter Day.
Breakout from the usual routine. Drink lots of tea. Ask ridiculous riddles much like The Hatter’s own, “Why is a raven like a writing desk?”
Play croquet with plastic pink flamingos (don't use real hedgehogs) or wear a funny, foppish flamboyant top hat to work. Celebrate today with silliness!
FUN FACT
Carroll once answered The Hatter’s riddle. In the 1896 edition of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Carroll wrote as part of his preface, “Because it can produce a few notes, they are very flat; and it is never put with the wrong end in front!”
HOW TO OBSERVE
Several ideas come to mind for celebrating this fun holiday. For one, grab yourself a top hat and let your silliness come out! Try these other fun ideas:
• Host a Mad Hatter tea party
• Read from "Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland"
• Tell absurd riddles
• Attend a production of Alice in Wonderland
Whatever you do, be sure to invite others to join in the fun. It’s the best way to #CelebrateEveryDay. And be sure to use #MadHatterDay to post on social media.
HISTORY
In 1986, a group of computer technicians in Boulder, Colorado first celebrated National Mad Hatter Day as a day of silliness.
The date of October 6 was particularly chosen because it matches the label tucked in the Mad Hatter’s hat band that reads “In this style 10/6.”
#MadHatterDay
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