I’m well-versed and I don’t think the classical definition applies to memes as we know them now. I think it stopped being applicable with the rise of social media when the goal of sharing them changed. And with it, the goal of making them.
Memes have become a substitute for discourse. Using the internet nowadays often feels like I’m back in middle school talking to the kid who couldn’t go more than 2 sentences without quoting the Simpsons.
I think it’s a perspective you can apply or not, and one I still find useful. Our goals and intentions aside they’re contagious little bits of information that want to spread, and what makes them good at doing so is interesting to think about. As a conceptual unit of discourse, I have a hard time seeing them as a potential substitute for it. Quotation as substitute for thought is another story, but a far older story than this (or perhaps any) medium
So let’s say I’m on board with the idea that modern memes are units of information and not just a cancer…
…nothing changes. They’re still shit that made the world a worse place. No-thought garbage flooding everyone’s attention. Waste of bandwidth and brainpower
I’m well-versed and I don’t think the classical definition applies to memes as we know them now. I think it stopped being applicable with the rise of social media when the goal of sharing them changed. And with it, the goal of making them.
Memes have become a substitute for discourse. Using the internet nowadays often feels like I’m back in middle school talking to the kid who couldn’t go more than 2 sentences without quoting the Simpsons.
I think it’s a perspective you can apply or not, and one I still find useful. Our goals and intentions aside they’re contagious little bits of information that want to spread, and what makes them good at doing so is interesting to think about. As a conceptual unit of discourse, I have a hard time seeing them as a potential substitute for it. Quotation as substitute for thought is another story, but a far older story than this (or perhaps any) medium
So let’s say I’m on board with the idea that modern memes are units of information and not just a cancer…
…nothing changes. They’re still shit that made the world a worse place. No-thought garbage flooding everyone’s attention. Waste of bandwidth and brainpower
That doesn’t seem like a very pleasant or productive perspective, but if it’s the one you want to apply go for it. Good luck out there friend
Most humor diminishes with repetition for me but if you’re able to laugh at the same jokes over and over and over, more power to you.
Yooo, you went to school with Brock, too!?