meme theory
-
Memes to mend the wound: digital cultures against language repression
by Rojda Yavuz Rojda Yavuz is a multidisciplinary creative with a practice rooted in writing and moving images. Their interests include the body and digital subcultures which they approach through a critique of power and coloniality. They are currently based in Brussels and can be found on Instagram via rrrrrojda. Visual communication and imagery on…
-
Femcel memes and resistance within meme subcultures
by Hazel Bergeron-Stokes Hazel is a writer focusing on resistance against neoliberal, postfeminist discourses through memes, art, and everyday interaction. You can follow her on @memehoeverlord on Instagram. Identifiable by an aesthetic of quirkiness, use of ‘sad girl’ symbolism, and self-aware irony, femcel memes create a distinctly gendered affective experience. Differing from both the extremist…
-
Cultural capital and ironic literacy in the meme economy
Meme Bulletin #6 by Lucie Chateau Memes do not exist on their own, but within a digital cultural economy where they are shared, liked and retweeted to accrue cultural capital. Cultural capital is the asset of knowingwhat makes a meme successful. It entails understanding societal trends and unique forms of humour and irony, as well as being in tune with…
-
Memes and Identity
By Giulia Giorgi Twitter: @GiuliaGiorgi14 Among the different functions ascribed to memes, the impact on the creation and expression of collective identities is probably one of the most studied aspects of memetic culture. In this context, memes are mostly conceived as either a shared code between members of online communities or as a social practice underlying the mechanisms of cultural production. Specifically, scholars agree that memes contribute to shaping “the…
-
Diary of a Meme Reader Co-Editor: Navigating the Ethics of Meme Copyright
By Chloë Arkenbout Twitter: @ArkenboutChloe “I previously ran into some issues with [an] academic journal […] with regards to copyright. I was not able to publish images of memes because I didn’t have the exact source or permission from the creator. This seems ridiculous since memes don’t have authors. I’d like to reference images in…