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Meme Life The Social, Cultural, and Psychological Aspects of Memetic Communication
Memes have been part of computer-assisted communication almost since the development of the first consumer browser (the "WorldWideWeb") in 1990. The Internet's ability to provide a public sphere for people to discuss the issues of the day and other topics of interest means that people can use the language of the Internet to express themselves in ways that would not be feasible in the real world. Those bits of content are native to the Internet that it feels obvious to want to understand why they are so compelling to tens of millions of people that use smartphones, tablets, computers, and other smart devices. This book seeks to explain how memes influence societies and cultures beyond the confines of social networking services. It will begin by reviewing the fundamental definitions that frame discussions about memes in popular culture and academic research. There will be a connection between theoretical concepts about memes and the memetic content itself. Each chapter will be using one theorist's work to dig a little deeper into what makes memes effective modes of engagement between people online.*Physical Books Can Be Purchased At Shop.geektherapeutics.com*
- GenresNonfiction
303 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 1, 2022
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October 24, 2024
Considering how this book frames itself, I expected something entirely different than what I got.
It seemed as though this book was going to frame itself in ways that memetic communication bridges other areas of social science and psychology research. Instead this came across as an ideological manifesto of what memes should be doing for collectives. The book never seems to outright say what it's doing, but it has a particular ideological bent that mostly seems like a reinterpretation of what communities and collectives are through a memetic lens. However, it argues this from the opposite direction. It defines memes as an exemplary case of what's called "structuration theory" but never says that. Instead it situates memes as the thing in the middle of collective social/political infrastructure and individualist psychology.
However, I think it sorely lacks in motivating these notions, doesn't touch on the right literature to make this argument, and does not offer a particularly good way to operate around memes outside of a purely ideological lens that it could have been more honest about.
It seemed as though this book was going to frame itself in ways that memetic communication bridges other areas of social science and psychology research. Instead this came across as an ideological manifesto of what memes should be doing for collectives. The book never seems to outright say what it's doing, but it has a particular ideological bent that mostly seems like a reinterpretation of what communities and collectives are through a memetic lens. However, it argues this from the opposite direction. It defines memes as an exemplary case of what's called "structuration theory" but never says that. Instead it situates memes as the thing in the middle of collective social/political infrastructure and individualist psychology.
However, I think it sorely lacks in motivating these notions, doesn't touch on the right literature to make this argument, and does not offer a particularly good way to operate around memes outside of a purely ideological lens that it could have been more honest about.
Displaying 1 of 1 review