Blog post #3 - Marina Florencio

For this week’s blog post, I will examine two examples of media texts that have “gone viral”: Martin Luther’s 95 Theses and the “Woman Yelling at a Cat” meme. Our task is to reflect on how the articulations discussed in class have manifested in these viral media texts. I have chosen the Second and Third Articulation to apply to both of my examples.

 

Martin Luther’s 95 Theses fractionalized the Catholic Church and sparked the Protestant Reformation. Indeed, Luther had an outstanding media campaign. His theses were nailed to the wall of the Roman Catholic Church, Luther protested on the power of indulgences. He created one of the first mass messages, spreading his message to the population. The printing press allowed him to spread his ideas quickly and to reach new groups of people. Martin Luther also knew his public and used the language of the people. The Second Articulation looks at how the content in the message entails a symbolic meaning, shared sentiment/affinity, and relation of power. With the printing press, Martin Luther shared multiple copies of his texts. He created a shared religious identity with the people. Eventually, his message resonated with different individuals, which led to an identity group that supported Luther. The Third Articulation concerns the dynamics of creativity and distribution. Copies of Luther’s texts were bought and distributed from person to person.

 

The meme “Woman Yelling at a Cat” uses two images taken at different times and place them together. This meme circulated the Internet for a long time, except the writing changes every time you see it online. Though the images remain the same once someone edits the writing, the text receives a new meaning. The replicability feature of this meme, like many others, can be considered a manifestation of the Third Articulation. This meme circulates digital platforms, and its consumption/reception also creates a public space for interactivity. In terms of the Second Articulation, this meme allows people to develop their symbolic meaning. As it has been over the years, anyone can edit this meme; different social groups can interact with numerous versions of this meme, facilitating the creation of a shared affinity towards the text.

Comments

  1. Taylor RandersonNovember 29, 2021 at 11:56 AM

    Hi Marina,

    I like your approach to this week’s prompt and think you have some interesting points! Specifically, I like your idea that internet memes create a shared social experience through public participation. In my opinion, I feel that this public involvement could cause the significance of internet memes to obtain greater societal meaning. In other words, by facilitating user participation, the medium provides more dynamic engagement with the text. Thus, I think this is an important note as this can explain why internet memes are a significant part of internet culture.

    Overall, great post! :)

    ReplyDelete

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