e123. Culture, Context, Protest, and Memefication

Have you ever gotten into an argument with someone on the Internet and they tried to prove their point by forwarding some meme that was a quote of a famous person for historical figure that seemed to vaguely relate to their point in the most perfunctory possible way? When this happened, did you think to yourself something like “I don’t think that means what you think it means?” Maybe you did a tiny amount of research, which is almost certainly more than they did, and you found out that the quote really was entirely out of context, and in fact may mean the exact opposite of what the person you are arguing with thinks it means. Maybe it isn’t a quote. Maybe they’re forwarding a headline or referencing a song that means the opposite of what they think. Often this happens when someone is supporting a certain American president who has even less of a tenuous grip on facts than the person you are arguing with. But try as you might, to explain the logical error, the person you’re arguing with simply refuses to understand that the meme they are forwarding is completely out of context. It’s as though they don’t care what the context was in the first place. You’re right. They don’t. On this week’s episode, Hannah, Katya, Wayne and Mav get together to discuss what memes are from both a sociological and pop culture point of view. How do they relate and how do they lose context over time? Listen and let us know what you think in the comments! Citations and Links: * This episode’s Call for Comments* Chutz-Pow! vol. I-III by Wayne Wise* CHUTZ-POW! Superheroes of the Holocaust Teachers’ Resource Guide by Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh* “The Allen Building Takeover, 1969” at Duke University* “Bookquest” by Wayne Wise* “Talking Leaves, Open Book” by Wayne Wise* “2019 Chron15 Pioneer: People’s State of the University” by Duke Chronicle Staff* “People’s State of the University: How student protesters’ demands have changed over the years” by Likhitha Butchireddygari* Twitter Thread of academics discussing historical oversights* “Star-Spangled Banner” as performed by Jimi Hendrix at Woodstock, 1969* Jimi Hendrix on the Dick Cavett Show* “