Woman's 'petty' revenge on couple who sat in front of her at the beach leaves people divided

A video showing a woman's clever - yet contentious - response to a couple who parked themselves in front of her.

It was far from a relaxing day at the beach. Credit: George Rose/Getty

And while some have praised the beachgoer's tactics, others have described her as "petty".

The TikTok video in question was shared by user Madison Gooch (@madison3gooch), and captures the moment an elderly couple set themselves up directly in front of a family's beach spot.

With her 7,000 followers tuned in, Gooch commented on the video: "A whole beach and this couple chooses to sit right in front of us."

In an effort to make the couple move out of the way of their view, Gooch's mom can be seen approaching the elderly couple, and throwing something on the ground behind them.

After throwing what appeared to be some sort of food on the sand near the couple, a flock of seagulls came swarming. The video concludes with the couple gathering their stuff to leave, following Gooch's terse text overlay: "Move."

Since its upload, the video has garnered staggering attention, with over 9 million views in a matter of weeks. But despite its viral status, the reactions to Gooch's act of retaliation have been largely polarized.

Many praised the clever maneuver by Gooch's mom, siding with the family's displeasure at having their view obstructed. One commenter championed: "Your mom is a true hero," while another confessed: "This is the level of petty I ASPIRE to be.

"Don't pay attention to any negative comments, this is beautiful."

A third user was equally supportive, writing: "People are so self-righteous.

"They looked at you guys knowing they blocked your view and still sat there unbothered. Great job." Another empathized with the family's predicament, relating it to the irritation of being parked next to in an empty lot.

Credit: Alexander Spatari / Getty

However, the tactical revenge plot also elicited disapproval from a fair number of viewers, who contended that the beach is a public space and everyone is entitled to sit wherever they please.

One disgruntled TikToker queried: "That was the dumbest thing to do, you couldn’t walk up and ask them to move or you guys could have moved. It is a public beach."

Others echoed this sentiment, arguing that it would have been simpler for Gooch's family to relocate. "Just move again. It’s a public place. People are not trying to intentionally harm you. You, however, are intentionally trying to harm. The narcissism," commented another user.

Meanwhile, a third simply questioned, "Why didn’t you just move to the left or right??"

So, in this case of beach etiquettes and viral TikTok content, the jury of the internet still seems to be out.

But what do you think? Let us know in the comments section.

Featured image credit: Josh Hawley / Getty