The heritage of memes

THIS year will go down as one of the most unfortunate in history. Since January, crisis after crisis has been following each other like cars in a traffic jam.

When we reach the year 2050 (if the human race is still around by then), the events of 2020 will be taught in history classes. It’s interesting to think about it. The same way we studied about the aftermath of Martial Law, our grandchildren will learn about how the human race survived this horrific year: through memes.

Anyone exposed to social media has come across a meme at least once. For Millennials and Gen Z they are like oxygen.

The word “meme” actually originated with evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins in 1976. He combined the Greek word mimeme meaning “imitated thing” and “gene”. His definition makes memes cultural ideas that spread and repeat themselves across society.

Just take a look at the pioneer memes like “Bad Luck Brian”, “Revelation Club Guy” and “Scumbag Steve”. Pictures of random people with witty captions made those featured in them famous. Their photos are known all over the world as memes.

Why are we addicted to memes?

They are a sort of coping mechanism during these difficult times. They are a way for society to accept and express how uncertain our future in through dark comedy and sarcasm. Climate change, corruption, unemployment and of course Ms. Rona are all dark clouds looming over our heads.

For a middle-class worker or a student, the best thing to do in this situation is to poke fun at it with a snarky meme. It reminds me the book “The Greatest Salesman in the World” by Og Mandino. One of the important life tips there is “to laugh at the world”.

That is what we are doing now. We are lightening the burden of our troubles by making fun of them. It’s so widespread that there is even the collective term “meme culture”.

You could even think of this as a revolution towards despairing and censorship. Memes show how the situation is without any sugar-coating.

When 2050 comes around and the youth there learn about this era, memes will be considered a heritage./PN