Internet Memes: Mind numbing or Cultural Revolution?

[Archi the Atmomancer 564]

I was watching a video on the Ideas channel or some such on Youtube (I'm afraid I can't link right now as I'm writing this on my phone) which proposed the idea that perhaps memes can help us reach a point where culture is essentially self replicating; a cultural singularity, if you will, where culture begets more culture - similar to how a technological singularity is where tech become advanced enough to improve and replicate itself.

However, me and my good friend were discussing how memes have a degenerative effect on the brain as they prevent us from expressing ourselves properly as we resort to using an easy, well-known phrase such as "forever alone" to express our feelings without much thought.

Please, discuss.

 

Edit: Here is said video:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNBOkp346G8

Edited December 24, 2012 by Archi

[Champion RD92 8,658]

However, me and my good friend were discussing how memes have a degenerative effect on the brain as they prevent us from expressing ourselves properly as we resort to using an easy, well-known phrase such as "forever alone" to express our feelings without much thought.

 

Just because memes exist doesn't mean you have to use those phrases instead of expressing your feelings with more thought. I think they are just fun phrases to use once in a while when the situation is appropriate for them.

[PlunderSteed 1,252]

I was watching a video on the Ideas channel or some such on Youtube (I'm afraid I can't link right now as I'm writing this on my phone) which proposed the idea that perhaps memes can help us reach a point where culture is essentially self replicating; a cultural singularity, if you will, where culture begets more culture - similar to how a technological singularity is where tech become advanced enough to improve and replicate itself.

 

However, me and my good friend were discussing how memes have a degenerative effect on the brain as they prevent us from expressing ourselves properly as we resort to using an easy, well-known phrase such as "forever alone" to express our feelings without much thought.

 

Please, discuss.

 

Dawkins touched on the idea of memetics as being similar to genetics.  They both adapt and replicate, branching off and spreading wherever an opportunity exists.  I'm not so sure the comparison is valid beyond just analogy, but it's interesting all the same.

[Archi the Atmomancer 564]

Just because memes exist doesn't mean you have to use those phrases instead of expressing your feelings with more thought. I think they are just fun phrases to use once in a while when the situation is appropriate for them.

Oh, I'm not saying that your brain spouts memes constantly or anything like that, but if we have difficulty expressing something we might tend to jump to memes rather than actually thinking about how we feel.

 

Dawkins touched on the idea of memetics as being similar to genetics.  They both adapt and replicate, branching off and spreading wherever an opportunity exists.  I'm not so sure the comparison is valid beyond just analogy, but it's interesting all the same.

Seem to recall Dawkins being mentioned in the video, I'll link it to the OP tomorrow morning when I actually have access to the computer.

[Jessper 735]

Oh my, nothing is just fun today, it always has to be deep, even when it's pretty shallow.

I guess if I said memes are used for fun and when it comes to internet, used to express feelings you cannot express using keyboard very well I would be a cursed simpleton.

[Ron Jeremy 2,032]

I see memes as the absolute lowest point of internet humor. Can't actually be witty? Just repeat a phrase. Can't make a witty comic? Slap poorly-drawn copy/pasted "meme faces" on it.

 

Memes used to be funny to an extent before they went mainstream. And no, I'm not trying to sound like a hipster. There was a time when memes didn't get as overused as they did. They were an in-joke in the communities they formed from, occasionally spreading to other image boards/forums/etc.

 

But then, sites like "the cheezburger network" popped up, and suddenly, these old memes those with a sense of humor got sick of are suddenly being thrust on people who barely/don't know at all the origin of them. Memes that ran their course were suddenly being thrust into the spotlight. Suddenly they were being referenced by mainstream media. Disgusting leech companies started putting them on their merchandise and in their software. Jokes that would have ran their course and slipped into obscurity now overstay their welcome. Old memes get pulled out of the sewage and thrown back on stage.

 

As a result, original content is dying. Instead of people drawing comics about scenarios, they draw stick figures with "meme faces". Instead of just making a joke, they slap it over a picture of an animal's face.

 

So yes, memes are numbing peoples' minds and making them become unfunny. If they are a "cultural revolution", then I guess I better get ready to live in complete isolation from society.

 

For example, there was a time when I had a comic series called "HATUR COMIX", that was the story of an over-the-top pony hater, which usually took the form of a four-paneled comic with intentionally-poor spelling and grammar, with intentionally-poor drawing. As little effort as I put into "HATUR COMIX", it had more artistic merit than "rage comics". You know why? Because "HATUR COMIX" was actually made by me, and not just random images slapped together with text on it.

[Sks_Burns 730]

most of them are done to death within a week of their inception, such as the me gusto face and all its siblings. i can appreciate people just fuckin around and having fun with it, but most of them are ran into the ground to the point of annoyance, simply because theres obnoxious people who try to attach them to absolutely every scenario. 

[Archi the Atmomancer 564]

Oh my, nothing is just fun today, it always has to be deep, even when it's pretty shallow.I guess if I said memes are used for fun and when it comes to internet, used to express feelings you cannot express using keyboard very well I would be a cursed simpleton.

Not at all, in fact simple answers such as that are usually the best. I only posted this because I found the subject interesting, I'm not trying to force people to become "deep" or anything Edited December 23, 2012 by Archi

[Twiliscael 3,960]

I want to rain hell down on whoever made the first Facebook post or Tumblr account with memes. There was a point 2 or 3 years ago when they were just little jokes around a community where they were funny and could be used in a witty way that could express feelings while still having fun. That's all ruined now because people abuse them and don't even regard what they were originally for. For example, the common Troll used to be (and should be) when someone methodically and carefully caused butthurt and mayhem within a discussion or thread but now it is used as just a low-level insult. All in all, there was a time when memes could be used correctly and portrayed something, but now they are just the mind-numbing and raising stupidity of our culture as a sentient species.

[HomuraBL 851]

I think on both sides people take internet memes too seriously. 

 

on one hand, you have the people who just spam memes.

 

On the other hand, you have people who say: overused. 

 

Images I have nothing to say for, but the just words one I do. 

 

Things like Gak, and Over 9000.

 

What's peoples problem with them? People act like it's a sin to say them. 

 

Either way, it's neither, it's mind numbing, nor is it a culture Revolution.

What makes them different then someone saying a Quote other then it being called a meme. 

 

Also, ever heard of words never hurt you? 

 

I will never get it. I will never get why people have such hatred for things like arrow in the knee and gak. 

 

"But they are used in random topics and serious ones and stuff."

So because one person does something wrong with it, EVERYONE has to be punished? 

[Jessper 735]

Not at all, in fact simple answers such as that are usually the best. I only posted this because I found the subject interesting, I'm not trying to force people to become "deep" or anything

While I enjoy complexity and depth it just feels like sociology and psychology are overdoing it the last few years.

 

You don't actually have to go far, just look at MLP. Men are watching it. Because it's fun and well made? No way! It's because they were unable to stand up to the social standards of masculinity and broke under the weight of of their faliure, as they now subconciously depict themselves as women. Ta-daah. See what I mean? It works similarly with memes. It cannot possibly be for fun. It's in fact about <insert important looking text here>. 

Edited December 24, 2012 by Jessper

[Moon Rat 4,772]

To be quite honest, I am really kind of iffy on the subject

 

On one hand a meme can be used to express emotion while on the other hand, it can be overused to oblivion

 

Unfortunately, our society has done the latter...

Overusing a meme to the point it isn't funny nor is it expressive anymore :/

[Retro*Derpy 3,195]

The content of the meme (or picture) is the culture part of it. What people do to it after(adding text) is the mind-numbing part. Don't get me wrong, there are some great memes out there, but most of them are... eh? But they are defiantly overused.

Edited December 24, 2012 by Biggie Cheese

[PlunderSteed 1,252]

Memes used to be funny to an extent before they went mainstream. And no, I'm not trying to sound like a hipster. There was a time when memes didn't get as overused as they did. They were an in-joke in the communities they formed from, occasionally spreading to other image boards/forums/etc.

 

Your opinion is well articulated and handily reasoned.  The only remaining question that I feel compelled to ask is simply...umad? 

[I used to be a stranger 7,994]

The single biggest danger and problem to modern society caused by internet "culture" (among a variety of other reasons) is the fact that most younger people in North America are lonely, and they try to seek community intimacy through the internet, and the justifications they seek through this medium are wide and broad. (Including internet memes, and fandoms, for example).

[Flaret 240]

Memes are fun until they are overused, but I do believe they are a bit of a part of the internet culture, with their ability to go viral. We share everything nowadays and I'd say that's definitely a part of culture (when it comes to our generation, that is).

[Dr. Nefarious 195]

Well it depends, if you are using them on the internet as jokes in appropriate situations is alright, but it gets completely mind numbing when people start using them IRL or in completely unfitting situations.

[Shanks 10,816]

Meme's to me are like swear words as they can provide a certain kind of spice or emphasis or are sometimes good for a joke but overuse them and it can get a bit old. My favorite word is the F word and though I love that word and its many many uses it is not my most frequently used word even though I am somewhat of a potty mouth.

[Dusty Soul 2,612]

I really don't like memes,  Internet memes are the lowest form of comedy.  I honestly dislike memes, as most of them are done to death.  They are a part of internet culture, that makes up for the comedy section.   My friends were yelling memes out IRL, adn just dancing around acting like idiots.  So, yeah I think it does have degenerative effects.

 

Things like Gak, and Over 9000.

 

 Those are two that honestly get annoying to some people, even if you don't say it a lot.  

[Booksmith 87]

Internet memes are an expression of the speed of our language. It is a combination of both visual data and text data which can express an idea and a moment in time. It's a step towards a language of icons which will one day replace text. 

[HomuraBL 851]

I really don't like memes,  Internet memes are the lowest form of comedy.  I honestly dislike memes, as most of them are done to death.  They are a part of internet culture, that makes up for the comedy section.   My friends were yelling memes out IRL, adn just dancing around acting like idiots.  So, yeah I think it does have degenerative effects.

 

 

 Those are two that honestly get annoying to some people, even if you don't say it a lot.  

 

 

But what about the things like Fanart and Animations and whole other stuff? The thing is, I don't like the whole concept of: "Overused."

 

The problem essential comes down to, it becomes overuse when a certain amount of people say it.

 

Why? Why do people suddenly feel the need to consider it annoying? I don't even use things like that and I have never once felt that they were annoying me. I saw them everywhere, still didn't find them annoying. 

 

Why do people find them annoying?

 

Also, the thing I hate the most is that we a basically not allowing any creativity simply because of a majority. Look up gak Fanart. 

 

Not everything has that one liner that everyone considers annoying in the first place. It's just gak, and what you can do with it. For example: Celestia's hair is gak! That one was really creative. 

 

However, people seem to be too scarred to do more, because they know they will probably be attacked for it. 

[TailsIsNotAlone 3,695]

I never knew cultural revolutions could be so dull and unoriginal. <_<

 

I have a few pony memes that I pull out from time to time when they're appropriate, just to illustrate a point. A meme by itself is more of an insult than a reply.

 

..Wait. There are memes out there that DON'T involve ponies? In that case,

...THANKS.

[Booksmith 87]

http://www.quickmeme.com/meme/3sbnj9/

 

Lots of internet memes involve things that would eat pony. Part of the meme phenomenon is the creation of new expressions based on a single image. It's fascinating really how one image can be made to relate to so many things. 

Edited December 24, 2012 by Plowplot

[Fluttershyfan94 5,742]

With the power of thread resurrection I summon thee! Resurrection of this thread shall now commence.

Memes are in fact an art, we are expressing ourselves using memes like we would art in a sense more comical one but regardless it is expressing yourself. Therefore it is a cultural revolution but also a means of expressing ourselves yes.

[EpicEnergy 23,224]

I don't know, memes to me have always just been mind numbing.