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Just a few years ago, the unicorn was a completely unknown mythical creature, only found in the farthest corners of the world. It had the head of a deer, cloven hooves instead of hooves, and the tail of a pig. So, how did it end up being a staple in every horse-loving teenage girl’s room, pink and covered in glitter? Unicorns have taken over the world – especially on social media. But why are we so fascinated by them?
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If you have a girl under 18 in your household, you probably know what we mean. Her room is likely plastered with fluffy pillows, teddy bears, pencils, boxes, and bedding with these little pink creatures. The unicorn no longer needs to be lured out of magical forests at the edge of the world; now you can buy one with two clicks on the internet or follow #unicorn on Instagram. Every respectable riding equipment seller offers them, of course. Even clothing stores and supermarkets do. This led the CEO of the large international online clothing company ASOS to state:
“The unicorn trend has gone wild on Instagram. Like avocados in the food world, unicorns are perhaps the most ‘Instagram-worthy’ of all creatures.”
And there's something to this claim. The hashtag #unicorn has been searched almost 13 million times, just on Instagram. If you're a child, unicorns are ubiquitous. If you're a girl, they're unavoidable. And best of all: they gallop into broader popular culture. An inflatable unicorn was the hit of the summer at the beach. The coffee chain Starbucks launched a Unicorn Frappuccino this year, and rainbow-colored toasts and cakes with horns are some of the most hyped food trends currently. In the makeup industry, you can get unicorn hair and nails. You can even buy glitter gel, called Unicorn Snot, if you want.
Unicorns are mentioned in ancient Indian literature, and in Europe, it was the Greek physician Ctesias who first wrote about the animal in 398 BC. He describes the unicorn as the size of a donkey, wild, lightning-fast, fierce, and impossible to capture alive. It has the legs of an elephant and the tail of a pig. He further writes that it has a long horn with great power on its forehead, protecting against the intake of poison.
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But there is a long way from ancient Greece to modern riding horses. So what is it about the myth that is so important to us horse people? To answer this, we need to look at the symbolic meaning of the unicorn...
Have great commercial value. While it was once associated with fertility and as a medical panacea, today it's only linked with glitter and sparkle. It's interesting that an animal, once so traditional, is now used in commercial campaigns for all sorts of things. The modern unicorn symbolizes certain special values. Strength, purity, happiness, and clarity are just some of them.
The unicorn represents a childlike innocence. It's a naive expression of our belief in hope and in something greater than ourselves. We do this when we hang a unicorn on the box or put a colorful horn on the horse's browband. Deep down, we believe that this little creature brings us luck and strength to withstand life's ups and downs, which are inevitably also encountered as a horse owner. As the CEO of Asos emphasizes, the unicorn is simply used as a little bright spot to make everyday life a bit more colorful:
“In a world with Trump and terror, the unicorn might actually be what we need.”
It's a kind of adult equivalent to the myth that Santa Claus exists. We believe in it. Cassidy believes in it (just look at the Instagram post). Do you?
