Fun with Memes
A Solicitation for Memetic Classification Systems
Alex Mayhew
FIMS, Oct 2 2020
Memes are the units of cultural inheritance
We can imagine Memes as being analogous to genes in biology.
They take all sorts of shapes and sizes, have diverse levels of complexity, and operate on all different scales of abstraction.
Memes are transmitted from one Work to the next, much like genetic inheritance.
Memes are the units of cultural inheritance
Examples from fiction might include:
From non-fiction we might look to:
Memes Types (Literary Studies)
Also: Hero’s journey
Meme Types (Motifs)
The Aarne–Thompson–Uther Index (ATU Index) is a catalogue of folktale types used in folklore studies. Describes hundreds of folktale types, organized together
Vladimir Propp’s Morphology of the Folktale - 31 basic structural elements (or 'functions') that typically occurred within Russian fairy tales.
The Fantasy classification system by Alastair Cameron was something like the Dewey Decimal System, with a hierarchy of science fiction and fantasy concepts
Meme Types (Metanarratives)
Many Christians believe that human existence is innately sinful but offered redemption and eternal peace in heaven - thus representing a belief in a universal rule and a telos for humankind.
The Enlightenment theorists believed that rational thought, allied to scientific reasoning, would lead inevitably toward moral, social and ethical progress.
Marxists believe that human existence is alienated from its species being, although capable of realising its full potential through collective, democratic organisation.
Categorical and definitive periodizations of history, such as the Fall of the Roman Empire, are rejected by postmodernism. Other periodization schemes include the Dark Ages and Renaissance.
Memes Types (Tropes)
A trope is a storytelling device or convention,
Tropes are tools that the creator of a work of art uses
It's pretty much impossible to create a story without tropes.
Research Methods
Smith, Terence & Zeng, Marcia & Smart, Laura & Tierney, Tim. (2002). Structured Models of Scientific Concepts as a Basis for Organizing, Accessing, and Using Learning Materials. https://doi-org.proxy1.lib.uwo.ca/10.1145/544220.544355
Research Methods
Soldatova, Larisa N. and King, Ross D. (2006). An ontology of scientific experiments. J. R. Soc. Interface. 3795–803. http://doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2006.0134
Research Methods
Groups of Memes (So Far)
There are many ways to organize memes:
Family Trees - Direct relationships (Allusions, Citations, etc)
Cladogram - Indirect Relationships (Genres, [Academic] Disciplines, etc)
Geneplex - Memeplex
Meme Constellations, Feature Bundle, Coherent Class of Intellectual Output
What I am looking for:
More systematic classifications of recurring intellectual patterns!
Especially for academic concepts!
Also: Efforts to unify such schemes