An image of a quintessential English terraced house led to a deeper discussion on X recently, regarding differences between European and American lifestyles. It’s part of an ongoing trend best summarized as ‘The American Mind Can’t Comprehend This’ meme—that, while often fun and lighthearted, hints at a growing gulf between the two regions online.
Tom Forth posted the image of a terraced, redbrick house in Leeds, UK, on April 29, 2025, saying, “Incredible to think that many Americans will look at this photo and think ‘poverty.’” The image has since garnered over 1.6 million views and 12,000 likes, as well as igniting an ongoing discussion in the comments section as to whether living in a house like this is representative of poverty in either the UK or the US.
Does a terraced house make you poor, and does this differ by region?
Comments were divided, with some users expressing that this was a low-income house, especially those from the USA. User Séamas Ó Scalaidhe commented, “That looks like what you see out of an Amtrak train going through some of the poor neighborhoods in Baltimore and Philadelphia.” Not everyone agreed, though, with user Lelena adding, “I’m American. It looks lovely to me!”
British and European commenters were typically more complimentary, although some chimed in that they also felt this house was a sign of poverty or at least representative of an uninspirational attitude to wealth. Tom also headed to the comments section to defend himself. “There is a certain ‘yeah but you are ugly’ posted underneath a beautiful woman’ vibe to some of the ‘no this is poverty’ replies,” he said. “Real houses have imperfections, and in many ways it is in their imperfections that their true beauty lies.”
Terraced houses are much more commonplace in the UK due to the country’s industrial history. While Italian-inspired terraces first came to the country in the 17th and 18th centuries, the redbrick terrace exploded in popularity during the Victorian era as rapid industrialization and economic growth meant that city workers needed cheap and convenient accommodation.
As a result, working-class cities like Leeds, a key site for the textile industry, invested significantly in terraced housing. These days, gentrification and price hikes mean that Victorian terraces are much more sought after—in fact, according to RightMove, the average house price for a terraced property in Leeds last year was £212,542 (the equivalent of $283,786.08 as of 6 May, 2025).
The ‘American mind can’t comprehend’ meme explained
This type of post is not exactly new. It’s one of several to take X by storm in recent weeks, many of which comment on the inherent differences between European and American lifestyles and play into a much older meme. On April 28, 2025, X user @hollowearthterf tweeted, “Europeans be like ‘time to go to the grocery store for the fifth time this week’”—referring to the stereotypical differences in grocery shopping schedules between Europeans and Americans.
Their quote was reposted by @heartednotes (Emma), who added, “meanwhile this is the 5 min walk to the grocery store… the American mind can’t comprehend” alongside two, picturesque images of a park and an autumnal, leaf-covered street in Rotterdam, Netherlands. These reaction images received over 5.5 million views.
The American mind cannot comprehend this pic.twitter.com/Bbcc8qlM8V
— Cigarette Dystopia (@CigsMake) April 25, 2025
Another recent example went even more viral, with over 82 million views and mentions in various global online outlets. On April 25, 2025, user Cigarette Dystopia posted an image of a group of young people, including a glamorous woman in a pink dress, smoking and drinking outside a Spanish cafe, along with the same phrase, “The American mind can’t comprehend this.” User OrthoComa responded, “Because sitting outside and enjoying a smoke and a beer is something no American has ever done…”, while @curiousfox1409 said, “@grok youth unemployment data Spain vs USA,”—signalling X’s AI to pull up unemployment statistics.
The tone of many of these responses is indicative of a shift in the online discourse surrounding European (often British) and American cultural differences. While “The American mindset can’t comprehend” meme has been around on the internet for eons, in its earlier iterations, it had a much more lighthearted feel (in what the British might refer to as a bit of harmless banter.) This often focused on jokes playfully mocking food or culture more generally, such as the British love for baked beans, beige Chinese food, and Robbie Williams.
However, over the past year or so, these previously frivolous online arguments have taken on a more serious tone. For example, in response to Tom’s initial post, one user said, “There are abandoned Baltimore row houses dedicated to the distribution of heroin that are tidier and more appealing than these places,” causing him to retort with, “I thought you were all killing yourselves with Fentanyl nowadays?” Other common digs brought up by Brits and Europeans in these interactions include school shootings and lack of healthcare, while Americans reference terrorist attacks, unemployment rates, and low income.
But where exactly is this vitriol originating from? When reporting on the trend recently, Newsweek suggested that potential causes could include tariffs implemented by the Trump Administration and Europeans boycotting the U.S. in response. Ideological differences and disapproval of President Trump are also causing many Brits to cancel trips to the States, but arguably this discourse has been on the rise since at least the post-COVID period, suggesting other factors such as widening cultural differences around issues like abortion, women’s rights, and trans rights could be at play.
There’s also an argument for broader cultural differences causing each region to prefer certain lifestyles over others, with some European cultures preferring imperfection and hedonism (think grubby chic fashion trends like ‘indie sleaze’), vs. stereotypical Hollywood beauty standards of athleisure and Instagram face. For Tom Forth, these are most apparent in how each region handles their laundry. “I find it funny how obsessed some Americans are with washing lines as a signifier of how well off you are,” he told the Daily Dot via email.
Whatever the real reason, it’s clear that differences between the two regions are reaching a boiling point—but whether that’s 212°F or 100°C—depends on what your mind can comprehend.
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