According to Wikipedia (Links to an external site.): “An Internet meme, more commonly known simply as a meme , is a type of idea, behavior, or style … that is spread via the Internet, often through social media platforms and especially for humorous purposes. Memes can spread from person to person via social networks, blogs, direct email, or news sources. They may relate to various existing Internet cultures or subcultures, often created or spread on various websites. One hallmark of Internet memes is the appropriation of a part of broader culture, for instance by giving words and phrases intentional misspellings (such as lolcats) or using incorrect grammar (such as doge).
In particular, many memes utilize popular culture (especially in image macros of other media), which sometimes can lead to issues with copyright.””There are two central attributes of Internet memes: creative reproduction of materials and intertextuality. Creative reproduction refers to “parodies, remixes, or mashups,” and include notable examples such as “Hitler’s Downfall Parodies”, and “Nyan Cat”, among others.
Intertextuality may be demonstrated through memes that combine different cultures; for example, a meme may combine United States politician Mitt Romney’s assertion of the phrase “binders full of women” from a 2012 US presidential debate with the Korean pop song “Gangnam style” by overlaying the politician’s quote onto a frame from Psy’s music video where paper blows around him. The intertextuality in the example gives new meaning to the paper blowing around Psy; the meme indexes intertextual practices in political and cultural discourses of two nations.”This assignment has two parts.
1) Create an Internet meme relating to the topics of this course.
2) Write 200-300 words describing
a) why the meme is interesting, insightful, and/or funny,
b) how it engages in creative reproduction of materials (e.g., repurposes previous meme formats, world news, etc.), and
c) how it is intertextual (that is, how it combines different cultural phenomena in ways that produce new meaning). Please turn in a single PDF that includes both your meme and the 200-300 words described above by the deadline specified below.
Requirements: 300
