![]() Understanding memes in this way as foundational elements of complex messaging reveals innately that they have the potential to influence society, politics and culture in significant ways. We can share memes far and wide or we can make our own, passing along little bits of ourselves in the process. Internet memes as we know them are anything that can be replicated, remixed or reapplied to convey a particular sentiment. Hashtags are memes, videos are memes, image macros are memes and infographics are memes. As the medium of dissemination is indicative of and fundamental to the content that’s being divulged, the meme format or type is not some neutral observer bearing witness to the compilation of meaning and messaging - the meme as the medium is the message. All of these elements play a substantial role in conveying information, making the meme quite literally the message. The images we choose, along with the symbols, the technological platforms and the mediums at their core, are an integral part of the signaling process. I think all of that is why we see so many funny memes, and why we tend to think ‘meme’ equals ‘humor,’ when that's really just one genre of the stuff that people are sharing.” And you've got the fact that humor spreads well, because it boils things down. You've got the fact that humor resonates with people more generally. “So you've got a culture that speaks in the humorous register. And humor is a really great way to have something resonate,” explains Ryan Milner, associate professor of communications at the College of Charleston and author of the 2016 book “The World Made Meme.” “If you see something that resonates with you in some way, you're more likely to pass it on, you're more likely to adopt it, you're more likely to make it your own. Memes go beyond humor in that they are the political cartoons and educational pamphlets and graffiti tags of the world wide web. But understanding irony and humor to be cornerstones of political participation in the digital age is key to discerning the role of memes as units of transmission that go beyond humor - they are units for political transformation, education, understanding and at times indoctrination. And that’s not wrong internet memes deal in the currency of humor, generally speaking. When most of us think of memes we think of humor. And while memes seem like a modern creation, a fad fixed in the present and determined to drive our communication in the future, in reality, memes have been in our toolbox of transmission for ages. Once a niche mode of communication only utilized by the few, internet memes have become the medium of choice for social, political and cultural messaging in the digital age. They enable people to convey complex ideas, and all of the social and cultural implications tied to them, in sometimes even one-word utterances.īut before we go any further, to answer the big question and demystify this seemingly novel form of communication - what is a meme? Sometimes there is no better way to get a point across than with a meme. ![]() Beyond packing humor and social commentary into a shorthand, easily-digestible format, memes are the culmination of sociopolitical and linguistic drift - valuable tools and vessels of culture. They are a central vehicle of online communication and increasingly, a source of social currency.Īnd they are everywhere: in family group chats, on newsfeeds and even referenced in political campaigns. As memes replace traditional cultural artifacts, they act as easily digestible vessels of social commentary and personal expression, serving as instrumental aids for social and political participation. Conveying complex meaning and sentiment in a minimum of space, they have the ability to illustrate, inform, encode and signal anything from information to allegiance. ![]() Memes are powerful units of cultural ephemera. So the question is not so much whether to meme but rather how and to what end? In the age of viral media, memeing is implied as a cornerstone of online communication. To meme or not to meme? That is the grand yet seldom-asked question.
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