When did you last send a meme to someone? Did you just mention a short while ago?
Let me explain what a meme is if you are a member of Generation X and are not familiar with them.
‘A meme is a picture that spreads online that has text added to it and usually contains biting criticism on social mores, cultural icons, or current events’. Usually a picture or a video, but occasionally a paragraph of text is considered a meme. A meme strikes a chord with a large number of people, it spreads across social media channels including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, messaging, and more. A meme can have a bigger impact on culture the more people share it. One way to characterize meme culture in the twenty-first century is as a dynamic revolution. Memes have always connected with youthful audiences because of their capacity to convey ideas and emotions in a lighthearted and approachable manner. Memes are currently one of the most widely consumed types of content online, although the majority of traditional media couldn’t stay relevant in the Internet age. The original purpose of memes was to spread a message via multiple mediums, including catchphrases, artwork, picture macros, short videos, and so on. These were used by the meme culture to promote awareness of it.
The social media behaviour survey conducted by YPulse found that 75% of 13 to 36-year-olds and 79% of 13 to 17-year-olds share memes. That’s a sizable proportion of young people who use these visual gags as part of their everyday speech and expression.
Additionally, it is said that 30% of young consumers send memes daily and that over half send them once a week. One in five people say they send memes frequently each day. It is the language of friendship for some people. Sending memes has become a daily practice for the younger generation. Few individuals acknowledge that they never send memes.
Almost two in five young consumers claim they follow meme accounts on social media, as has been reported, and these accounts have millions upon millions of followers. Teenagers are even more likely to follow meme accounts; 56% of 18–20-year-olds and 43% of 13–17–year-olds, respectively, report doing so. Memes are a popular source of entertainment for young people.
According to a report by the consulting firm Redseer, Indians spend about 30 minutes each day online just watching memes, and more than 80% have increased their meme consumption in the past year.
All these reports suggest to us how prominent the use of memes has become.
Every now and then, there’s someone watching, liking and sharing memes.
Psychological research says that because memes can be used to avoid boredom, escape from reality, maintain mood, and procrastinate, excessive meme viewing has been linked to phone addiction. It might turn into a lifelong, automatic habit.
Also, studies demonstrate that viewing memes might aid in stress relief and burnout management. The meme-sharing scene represents a larger human identity. Sharing these events improves our mental health. Wholesome and awe-inspiring stuff can make us feel happy. Memes can also be a form of love language, and they facilitate social connections.
The real question now is whether memes are influencing the civilization we live in. If so, what kind of culture is discernible?
Memes have become like morning tea in our lives.
Memes are now used by people for both amusement and communication. Consider the memes from “Shark Tank India” or “Mirzapur.” They are used to convey emotions such as shock, astonishment, rage, unease, etc. The intense emotion they contain is what sets memes apart from other components of image-related artefacts. The meme always steers you towards a certain emotion, such as disgust or excitement. Memes might be viewed as subjective.
Even the strength of friendships may now be determined by how many memes someone shares because we are all so addicted to spreading them. It’s tough to picture a day with no memes. Additionally, because it has ingrained itself into our daily lives, the effects are very clear.Many theories conclude that Memes can be deceptive. Memes are impacting our opinions, perspectives and notions since we are somehow dependent on the meme culture. In the name of amusement and enjoyment, memes can be unpleasant, hateful, sexist, racist, or Islamophobic. We fail to take offense at the things that ought to have outraged us because it’s a MEME.
People are also controlling the audience by using memes as people create dank memes for the adult audience and funny innocent memes are meant for kids. There are different types of memes such as political, social and cultural memes etc. It is also interesting to note that different memes have different audiences.
One more thing which is a little concerning about memes is that there are moments when privacy is not respected while making memes.
Anything can go viral in this day of technological advancement and rapid expansion.
Whether it be a picture, a private video, or even a talk. People just use anything to make memes without giving the privacy of the other person a thought. I recall reading about a man who felt insulted when someone took a photo of him and turned it into a meme. There was neither his permission nor his consent. And this is something we should think about. We are violating someone’s right to privacy just so you can “laugh” at memes. People’s personal or private matters aren’t for our amusement, and we need to remember this.
In my opinion, it’s acceptable to create memes and enjoy sharing them with others, but we should refrain from offending anyone whose privacy is at risk. We also need to establish clear boundaries between what is acceptable and what is not. We must recognise that not everything is meant to be enjoyed. Every meme has its own meaning and that meaning depends on the opinion you already hold.
So the next time you encounter a meme, I hope you’ll think twice before sharing it.
Laaiba
Laaiba, is a writing enthusiast, studying Literature. She loves to indulge herself in creating stories and writing poems. She is an old soul, believing in hard work to achieve something better each day.