BLOQUE 6. MEMES, MEMES EVERYWHERE.

Question 1

‘MEME’ WAS INTRODUCED BY

Answer 1

THE BIOLOGIST RICHARD DAWKINS IN HIS BOOK ‘THE SELFISH GENE’

Question 2

Dawkins defined memes as

Answer 2

small cultural units of transmission that spread from person to person by copying or imitation

Question 3

Like genes, memes are defined as

Answer 3

replicators that undergo variation, competition, selection, and retention.

Question 4

[A meme] conveys the idea of a unit of

Answer 4

cultural transmission

Question 5

Three main attributes ascribed to memes are:

Answer 5

(1) a gradual propagation
(2) reproduction via copying and imitation,
and
(3) diffusion through competition and selection.

Question 6

Sites express

Answer 6

paths for meme diffusion

Question 7

Memes may best be understood as

Answer 7

pieces of cultural information that pass along from person to person, but gradually scale into a shared social phenomenon

Question 8

Two main repackaging mechanisms of memes:

Answer 8

mimicry and remix

Question 9

Mechanism of memes: Mimicry involves the practice of

Answer 9

“redoing”—the re-creation of a specific text by other people and/or by other means.

Question 10

Mechanism of memes: Remix involves

Answer 10

technology-based manipulation, for instance by Photoshopping an image or adding a new soundtrack

Question 11

A third attribute of memes that is amplified in digital environments is

Answer 11

their diffusion through competition and selection.

Question 12

INTERNET MEMES ARE: 3

Answer 12

(a) a group of digital items sharing common characteristics of content, form

(b) created with awareness of each other

(c) circulated, imitated, and/or transformed via the Internet

Question 13

Key attributes of virality: 3

Answer 13

(1) a person-to-person mode of diffusion

(2) great speed by social media platforms

(3) broad reach by bridging multiple networks

Question 14

The main difference between Internet memes and virals

Answer 14

relates to variability

Question 15

the viral comprises

Answer 15

a single cultural unit

Question 16

an Internet meme is always

Answer 16

a collection of texts.

Question 17

It could be argued that viral diffusion is a more

Answer 17

passive mode of communication than memetic imitation

Question 18

MODE OF ENGAGEMENT
VIRAL

Answer 18

SHARE

Question 19

MODE OF ENGAGEMENT
MEME

Answer 19

ENGAGE WITH IT CREATIVELY

Question 20

COMMON ATTRIBUTES OF MEMETIC VIDEOS 5

Answer 20

• Focus on ordinary people - Youtube
• Humor
• Simplicity
• Repetitiveness
• and whimsical content

Question 21

gaps as

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enhancing the “spreadability” of content

Question 22

these memetic videos spread the notion of

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PARTICIPATORY CULTURE itself

Question 23

Conclusion: “bad” texts make

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“good” memes in contemporary participatory culture.

Question 24

For Kristeva, intertextuality means that

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a given text does not exist as an independent or closed unit or system.

Question 25

[intertextuality is] a mosaic of

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quotations; any text is the absorption and transformation of another.

Question 26

Simply by replacing the image of monster and inserting an ideologically motivated choice, in one such case President Donald Trump,

Answer 26

an intertextual relationship is created

Question 27

In the meme, a scene from an episode of The Twilight Zone depicts

Answer 27

a troubled man seated in the cabin of an airplane looking desperately toward the viewer in reaction to a supposed gremlin monster looking into the plane from the outside.

Question 28

INTERTEXTUALITY +

Answer 28

MATHESON

Question 29

intertextuality is

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purposeful AND unavoidable

Question 30

all texts are

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intertexts: references to other content, citations to previous work

Question 31

STOCK CHARACTER MACROS: 2 FEATURES

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• they use image macros
• they build on a set of stock characters that represent stereotypical behaviors.

Question 32

It was the first prominent manifestation of “image macros”:

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LOLCats

Question 33

LOLCats are

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pictures of cats accompanied by systematically misspelled captions

Question 34

REACTION PHOTOSHOPS:

Answer 34

photographs that provoke extensive creative reactions.

Question 35

we can study memes as reflections of

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cultural and social collectives, as well as the individual voices constituting them

Question 36

Internet memes =

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GROUPS OF ITEMS WITH SIMILAR CHARACTERISTICS

Question 37

The terms “viral” and “memetic” are not

Answer 37

coextensive

Question 38

memes connect personal and political realities and characterizes

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“networked individualism”

Question 39

It is the group where

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interpretive salience is located

Question 40

memes, like language, are

Answer 40

neutral

Question 41

the meaning ascribed to memes is achieved

Answer 41

actively by individuals and groups.

Question 42

A political meme is a

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sub-genre of the internet meme and addresses some aspect of political philosophy and ideology

Question 43

political memes and their perceived importance often follow

Answer 43

the news cycle

Question 44

while particular memes as reactions to a political issue/event may be shortlived,

Answer 44

their discursive function remains a tenable option for later use.