Who are you? Who made you? Where are you from? Why are you here?
Meme producers are like snipers, you can never see them
-Ammar Faiz
Thanks to Memes and the constantly changing content shared online, there’s never a dull moment on the internet. They may seem basic, but from a linguistic point of view, they’re surprisingly sophisticated. Meme creators use “multimodal grammar” (in other words, images and captions) to express and share ideas and opinions.
But what are memes? and why are they here?
The first published case of the word meme (pronounced “Meem,” not me-me), dates back to Richard Dawkins’ 1976 book, The Selfish Gene. Dawkins referred to it as a “Mimeme”—a word derived from Greek that means “that which is imitated.” The word was then abbreviated to just “meme” due to its similarity to the word “gene.”
With the wide use of social media and sites like Reddit, 9GAG, and 4Chan, it has become increasingly easy for memes to gain popularity and go viral overnight, with millions of daily visitors looking to have a lol or two.
Before the internet came along, memes tended to have political or cultural significance, and their popularity lasted much longer than they do today. While some memes today can still show longevity, most go from viral to forgotten in a relatively short time. This is partly due to how fast the internet moves (there’s always something new to grab your attention) and partly because of how easy it is to create memes.
Memes have also moved away from political or cultural topics to focus more on pop-culture references and sarcastic life observations, making them relatable, funny, and easier for them to spread like wildfire across the web.
Considering memes are a form of fast entertainment, I was wondering if comics and stand up comedy would go obsolete because of memes? Has meme cultural replaced comedy shows and comics?
The newspaper holds a page that is filled with funny comics, something i have always loved reading, but why would we wait 24 hours to get hold of something that makes us laugh if we have hands on memes- the fastest mode of entertainment? Why wait for that long?
Memes are chuppa rustoms. Memes let you accept those dark aspects of life that you won’t be able to accept if talked with seriousness.
Memes are halka pulka
Sir Aarish
Do we know humans that are chalte phirte memes?
Can vloggers be qualified as meme-ers? Do we have meme-artists around us that are not literally creating memes but making videos that act like one?
Let’s look at famous vloggers and see them from the lens of meme-ers.
Everything can be done in Pakistan but very interestingly enough Korea has censored, and put very strict instructions on what can be made viral and what needs to be removed from the public platforms. We are being watched, even when we are joking. Let’s made a meme on that?
But anyway, I’m looking forward to seeing what replaces memes.
A meme that I created myself:
Tools & Technology in Art Education 