Blog Post #3

Blog Post #3

 

Olivia Custodio 

The first articulation is manifested in Martin Luther's 95 Theses. The message and content of the theses were Luther's disapproval of the Roman Catholic Church's sale of indulgences (Mohn, 2016). The theses were originally printed, and therefore the technological means of the medium that carried the message was paper and print, made possible by the printing press. The agents that made the production, distribution, and consumption of the 95 these possible were the authors and printers of copies of Luther's book, merchants who were responsible for selling the books, and readers who purchased, read, and shared Luther's ideas. 

        The first articulation is also manifested in the “Women Yelling at a Cat” meme. The memes content includes a woman hysterically crying and pointing, with an image of a confused cat sitting at a dinner table with a plate of vegetables in front of him. The message of the meme varies depending on the text that is accompanied with it. However, the general message in the image is that the woman is yelling at the cat while he is confused because he does not understand why she is frustrated or upset. The technological means of the medium that carry the message are the Internet, social media, computers, and cell phones. Taylor Armstrong from the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and Smudge the cat are each part of the meme are both agents that make the production of the meme possible (Philipp, 2019). Twitter users, @MISSINGEGIRL who edited the two images together, and @lc28__ who made the first meme of the images are both agents in the production and distribution of the meme (Philipp, 2019). Lastly, the millions of people who have viewed, shared and edited the meme further are agents in the distribution and consumption of the meme.


References

Mohn, T. (2016). Long before Twitter, Martin Luther was a media pioneer. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/30/arts/design/long-before-twitter-martin-luther-was-a-media-pioneer.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=wide-thumb&module=mini-moth®ion=top-stories-below&WT.nav=top-stories-below&_r=0 

Philipp. (2019). Woman yelling at a cat. Know Your Meme. Retrieved from https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/woman-yelling-at-a-cat


Post by: Olivia Custodio

Comments

  1. Shanna AllimanNovember 30, 2021 at 9:54 AM

    Hello Olivia,
    I enjoyed reading your post this week. You demonstrated the first articulation of Martin Luther's 95 Theses present in these two forms of viral media. Even though they are from completely different time periods and differ in technology, you made the connection of consumption, production and distribution in both of these examples. They individuals who took part in sharing these viral forms are agents as you mentioned. This is a great point.

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