Bestiarium Memeticum

Conference Paper

Author

Sophie Publig

Publisher, Location, Date

i2ADS, Porto, PO, Portugal, 2024

Keywords

digital cultures, internet memes, critical posthumanism, bestiary, monsters, sympoiesis

ISBN/ISSN/ISMN, DOI

ISBN/ISSN/ISMN:
978-989-9049-73-4
DOI:
10_34626/2024_xcoax_015

URL

https://2024.xcoax.org/xcoax2024.pdf

Text

Building on my previous research on internet memes from a critical posthumanist perspective, the Bestiarium Memeticum presents a collaborative-based understanding of memetic evolution reimagined through the framework of a medieval bestiary. Memes, defined as vital assemblages that interweave users, platforms, and online customs, are reinterpreted through the lens of mythology, enriching conventional descriptive analyses with reflections on their ethical and poetic dimensions. The Bestiarium Memeticum serves as a tool that not only foregrounds non-human agencies, but also offers a whimsical yet insightful exploration of ambiguous phenomena such as exploitables, copypastas, viral audios, algospeak, Wojak, the Girl Online, AI cryptids, and online cults. This allegorical account not only expands the understanding of digital cultures, but also promotes a nuanced understanding of the memetic forces at play, revealing how modern myths define and contest the realms of knowledge and power in the digital age. This approach reveals the transformative power of these narratives, reshaping how we understand collective human and non-human interactions in the entanglement of offline and online entities.

Volume/Issue, Pages

214-232

Document
Document

Activity List

Associated Media Files

  • Document
    Document
    #1
Published By: Sophie Publig | Universität für Angewandte Kunst Wien | Publication Date: 29 September 2024, 11:14 | Edit Date: 29 September 2024, 11:27