Meme

Meme

A meme is an idea, behavior, or style that spreads from person to person within a culture. The term meme (pronounced /miːm/ MEEM) was coined by Richard Dawkins in his 1976 book The Selfish Gene as an attempt to explain the way cultural information spreads.

History

The concept of the meme was first proposed by British evolutionary biologist, Richard Dawkins in his book The Selfish Gene. Dawkins used the term to refer to any cultural entity that an observer might consider a replicator. He hypothesized that people could view many cultural entities as capable of such replication, including melodies, catch-phrases, fashion, and the technology of building arches.

Characteristics

Memes generally replicate through exposure to humans, who have evolved as efficient copiers of information and behavior. Because humans do not always copy memes perfectly, and because they may refine, combine or otherwise modify them with other memes to create new memes, they can change over time. Dawkins likened the process by which memes survive and change through the evolution of culture to the natural selection of genes in biological evolution.

Memes and the Internet

With the rise of the internet and social media, memes have become a significant part of popular culture. Internet memes can spread rapidly and become incredibly popular, often through the use of social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. These memes often take the form of images, videos, and text, and are frequently humorous or satirical in nature.

See also

• Cultural evolution
• Viral phenomenon
• Internet culture

External links

• Meme Central - A comprehensive resource for information about memes.

Meme Resources
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