Clearly I couldn’t begin a blog post about memes without actually using one, that would just be a complete waste of an opportunity.

I would like to say that I am no stranger to memes. First and foremost, as a middle school teacher, my students are constantly making references to memes and other jokes that make me feel as though I have aged considerably overnight. Additionally, I spend more time than I would like to admit on social media where I stumble across my fair share of meme and meme based images.

However, I have never truly considered the social impact of memes prior to completing this module. At first I was unsure as to the best way to approach analyzing these images aside from whether I found them funny or crude. In reading Milner’s article about the social implications of memes, I found it amazing that a group of pixels manipulated by anonymous users online could serve as a stark litmus test for our society.

Milner spends the majority of his piece explaining the power of trolling and how it implicates societal attitudes. Although I had used the word countless times, I found myself unable to define what it means to “troll” prior to reading this piece. According to Milner, trolls find entertainment at other people’s expense, creating a decisive us vs. them dichotomy that creates two specific groups: those who troll in an attempt to cause harm or otherwise discomfort to a group, and those who are the victim of trolling. What I found particularly interesting was the amount of trolling that was targeting specifically to women and minorities. Although there are some memes that target the white male, even those succeed at some small scale in disenfranchising the other groups. Something as nondescript as a “she’s out of his league” joke, which initially appears to be targeting the male as the victim of trolling, minimize the woman involved to be nothing more than a sexualized body that exists only for the benefit and conquest of the male, successful or not. A popular meme, “Friend Zone Fiona” also exists for this purpose.

However, for every person who is offended by one of these images, there is another claiming that it is simply a “joke.” Despite Poe’s Law stating that there is an innate difficulty in understanding the intent of a post, thus making its status as a joke or insult unclear, I would have to disagree. Jokes, even the most innocent, are based in some form of truth. It is nearly impossible to make a statement purely for jest without some level of underlying belief or ideal behind it. Take, for example, a more racially motivated meme such as “Successful Black Man” or the “build your fort” manipulation presented on Reddit. Many members of extremist groups create or manipulate images such as these as a litmus test of sorts for those viewing it. An agreement with the image (whether in outright agreement, laughter, or further manipulation that maintains the same message) is, in a way, an indirect agreement with the ideals that motivated such an image. Simply put, why would one find such an image funny? And what does that say about the viewer and their ideals or intentions.

Milner’s social views on memes had a notable impact on my understanding of memes and their ability to filter society into a number of groupings based on the images that one finds interesting, humorous, or worthy of manipulation. This “magic” aspect of memes to be manipulated and individual yet still be able to stand for a differentiated discourse in society was fascinating. But the concept of Meme Warfare was, frankly, terrifying.

I had seen Pepe the Frog back when he was considered to be “Dat boi” or “sad boi” (am I aging myself once more?). However, perhaps I lived under a rock during the 2016 election because I had no recollection of Kek or Pepe being used as an alt-right icon to support the election of Donald Trump. Although it first seemed far fetched to me, I was frightened by how possible it seemed. Just as the aforementioned meme magic is able to serve as a decisive litmus test for the ideals of society, so too could a meme influence and sway something as decisive as a presidential election. Although some may write it off as a hoax or over exaggeration, have we not seen the power of suggestion on smaller scales? Add to that the fact that the Alt-Right has specifically and intentionally manipulated the imagery with their own form of (dark) meme magic to better serve their purpose and we have a witches brew custom made for the election.

So what I’m left with is the struggle between the magic and the warfare of memes. At  the surface they serve as a creative outlet that shows the pop culture’s development at the rapid pace of the internet. But underneath the colors and jokes and laughter lies something darker: a terrifyingly accurate portrayal of the current societal beliefs and expectations.

We’re rapidly approaching another presidential election and I, for one, am both interested and somewhat terrified to see what implications meme magic and warfare have on its societal implications and impacts.

…. Now that’s something I never thought I’d have to say.