As we scroll through the internet, we come across one piece of news after another, but it's always the memes that catch our eye. After all, humor can work as a stress buster, even if it's just for a little bit of time. However, have you ever wondered where the memes that keep us entertained really come from?
Well, the British evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins is credited with introducing the term in his 1976 book, The Selfish Gene. By Dawkins’ definition, memes are cultural ideas that spread and repeat themselves across society. While he might have coined the famous word, D. Andrew Price, the head of content at Memes.com, argues that memes have existed literally forever.
Memes have now become such a common part of everyday human action that the term "meme culture" is turning into a global phenomenon. In fact, its popularity has surged so high that new aspects like celebrating "meme day" in school or jobs like "meme content creator" are noticed regularly. According to Instagram, at least one million posts mentioning "meme" were shared every day in 2020.
However, there's a serious side to it. Research suggests that they are a language in themselves, with a capacity to transcend cultures and construct collective identities between people. These sharable visual jokes can also be powerful tools for self-expression, connection, social influence, and even political subversion.
One shocking thing that meme culture has given birth to is the "meme economy". As it has been observed, "Platforms like Reddit even have 'meme stocks,' where users invest virtual currency in memes they think will go viral. This intersection of internet humor and economics is a fascinating development, showing just how far-reaching meme culture has become."
The same article also shares how this culture has even spread its influence in the gambling world, where something called a "meme bet" has taken shape. Apparently, it refers to bets placed on outcomes related to internet culture or viral trends. These bets might revolve around the success of a particular meme, the outcome of a meme-inspired challenge, or even the popularity of a meme-based cryptocurrency.
As per ScienceDirect, memes that sparked a stronger emotional response were more likely to be shared, and people were also more likely to forward funny videos over cute, disgusting, or anger-inducing ones. Meanwhile, research conducted during the 2020 lockdown in Spain found that humor was a core feature of memes shared using WhatsApp.
Turns out that it helped take the sting out of the fear and uncertainty that was widespread at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. Well, this does make memes sound like something quite powerful, doesn't it? After all, not everything has the power to chase away fear of the unknown!
Well, folks, that's it from our end. We really hope that these dank memes make you laugh out loud and make your day at least a teeny tiny bit better. Now you can sit back and enjoy the remaining memes in this list. Don't forget to upvote the ones you love and let us know about them in the comments!
