Blog Post #3 - Dylan Gowanlock
In this blog post, two examples of texts that have "gone viral" in different time periods will be examined. I will be looking at these two viral texts through the lens of the third articulation discussed in class. This articulation deals with "Spatio-temporal locations" or more specifically the where and when these pieces of text and media are produced, distributed, and received. The first text that will be looked at is Martin Luther's "95 Theses" which came about as a response to being sold indulgences by the catholic church (Standage, 2013). The second of these texts that will be looked at is the iconic woman yelling at a cat meme that is actually derived from a freeze-frame from the show "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" as well as a Tumblr post from 2018 featuring an apathetic looking white cat in front of a plate of food (Ritzen, 2019).
To begin, Martin Luther wrote the "95 Theses" in the early 1500s as a form of criticism of the catholic church and its practices. This document was widely consumed and resulted in Protestantism, a form of Christianity that would lead to numerous conflicts throughout Europe for hundreds of years to come. Martin Luther was able to distribute his ideas in large part due to the invention of the printing press, this device allowed the word to spread quickly and fostered a hunger for knowledge and a desire to understand Martin Luther's point of view. This printing press allowed the ideas that Martin Luther initially wrote to reach the whole of Germany within fourteen days and the entirety of Christendom in four weeks' time. The rapid spread of consumption even shocked Martin Luther himself as he wrote to a printer in Nuremberg that they are printed and circulated even far beyond his own expectation (Standage, 2013).
The meme of the cat on the other hand is a modern example of the rapid circulation of cultural texts. A woman cast in "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" is pictured frantically yelling at another co-star on the show. This image was then captured and frequently paired with a picture of a rather smug-looking cat and then paired with text that often spurs the virality and increases the instances in which the meme is shared. Social media users around the world are able to create their own version of this meme and then share and interact with others as a result of this. Again, this all relates back to the third articulation which deals with the places in which text and media are produced, distributed and received. I have attached one of my favourite renditions of the cat meme below.
References.
Ritzen, S. (2021, May 20). How an unlikely marriage of memes gave us 'woman yelling at cat'. Retrieved from https://www.dailydot.com/unclick/woman-yelling-at-a-cat-meme-origin/
Standage, T. (2013, October 15). “The Ancient Foundations of Social Media Why Humans are Wired for Sharing”. In T. Standage. Writing On the Wall: Social Media The First Two Thousand Years (p. 6-211). Bloomsbury.
Hi Dylan,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your blog post, and you had some great ideas that you discussed! While reading your post, it became very clear how even during separate time periods, both examples of texts went viral, and were able to be spread amongst a mass audience for their own consumption because of a form of new media that was available for the texts creators to use to their advantage. The way in which Martin Luther wrote the "95 Theses and used the printing press as a means of spreading his message mirrors that of social medias purpose today. To a certain extent, you can even argue that the way in which Luther utilized the printing press affording Luther him to create a media storm amongst a mass audience demonstrates one of the key affordance powers of communication technologies as previously discussed by Nancy Baym, which was ‘reach’, which refers to the size of an audience a media form can attain and support. Copies of Luther’s pamphlets were not only bought, but also shared and passed from person to person within a local community, ultimately expanding the reach of his message, like re-sharing (or re-tweeting or re-posting) something on social media.
- Josh DiBellonia
Hi Dylan, I really enjoyed your blog post. To further build off of your point when you said that Martin Luther's ideas were able to be spread because of the printing press, I believe that by Luther deciding to translate his 95 theses into other languages such as German, was a key factor in the virality of his theses. It is very interesting when you compare these two instances of virality side by side one another because you are able to see how similar two things are although there are centuries apart in age. The 'women yelling at a cat' meme is something that I have seen so many variations of the cat meme that I have lost count and there are so many I have yet to see like the one you added in your blog post. But it is because of these variations adding a new spin on the existing meme and attracting new people to the meme that it became so viral. This is very similar to the translation of theses into other languages because in both cases it involves entering into a new audience to further spread a message.
ReplyDeleteHey there Dylan,
ReplyDeleteIt was interesting to read about your blog post and your description of how the cat meme and Martin Luther's Theses were connected together especially through that of the third lens of articulation. The printing press did allow for Luther to spread his message as quickly as possible especially in his time period and with the level of technology he had available to him. Its easy to argue that Luther somewhat was a participant of one of the first instances of mass public media since his theses were spread all over the country to those who could read. It was also interesting to see that he decided to choose this path because of the push back he was going to receive from the church for his writing for. He in a way went against the church in a public forum and used society and culture to spread what he thought was wrong with the church. Could you imagine what would have happened if he did something like that today especially with the current society and technology?
Hey Dylan,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your blog post this week! I discussed the same articulation, as well as analyzed Luther's 95 Theses and the "Woman Yelling at a Cat Meme'' in my response this week too. I liked how you acknowledged that Luther's 95 Theses' viral success could be attributed to the platforms that helped distribute it such as the printing press which allowed word to spread quicker than ever before and sparked an angst for learning. Without the help of the printing press, Luther's word would not have spread as quickly or have reached as wide of an audience as it did. In the process of a media text successfully becoming viral, it is of utmost importance that word spreads quickly and over a wide geographic location.
In response to your third paragraph, I enjoyed how you acknowledged that the famous meme is a modern example of a rapid circulation of a media text. Participatory culture also comes into play when discussing the widespread circulation of this meme as social media users around the world are able to create their own version of this meme and then share and interact with others as a result of this. Do you believe the "Woman Yelling at a Cat" meme will have a lasting cultural impact on us as Martin Luther's 95 Theses has? I'd love to know your thoughts.
Overall, great post!
-Annabelle Spina
Hey Dylan!
ReplyDeleteWow, there is some really great discussion here! Your understanding of the course content is clearly evident in your ability to complete this blog post. Great job! I really enjoyed your discussion on Marti Luther and his theses. Although was familiar with the story behind it as I took many art history courses in my student life, you really helped me understand it more than I thought I could. I appreciate your emphasis on on the printing press because it really was such a turning point in the distribution of media in history.
In regards to your take on the cat meme, I think you are completely correct in saying that there is an obvious connection to how these two media texts were able to spread in different time periods. I also talked about the collaborative nature of this meme and those like it as I believe it helps spread it even farther than just a viral picture. Likewise, I really like your example! What do you think the impact that the women yelling at cat meme has on culture? Do you think there are any negative connotations to the widespread of this meme?
Great work!
- Kitt