Edited by Derek M. Sparby
RIP to this legend, Dave Brandt
Description of collection
Memes are ubiquitous in digital spaces. Recent studies on rhetorics and memes show that they can help us express how we’re feeling and build community spaces (Lewis, 2012; Milner, 2013a, Sparby, 2017; Levesque DeCamp, 2022; Sparby, 2023); they can radicalize and influence politics and social movements (Milner, 2013b; Vie, 2014; DeCook, 2018; Mina, 2019; Woods and Hahner, 2019; Spencer, 2019; Condis, 2020; Williams, 2020; Sparby, 2022); and they can even cause digital harm through appropriation and antagonism, or respond to and resist it (Milner, 2013c; Miltner, 2014; Scott, 2014; Phillips, 2015; Jackson, 2017; Jackson, 2019).
One thing these studies and many others have in common but that isn’t always directly addressed is rhetorical identity. For instance, Mina (2019) provides us glimpses into Chinese, Ugandan, and Spanish political meming contexts, explaining how memes can be used to subvert dominant political power structures (while also delighting in the fact that so many countries use animal-based humor) and Spencer (2019) examines memes surrounding anti-trans bathroom bills, showing the ways that memes either support or reject the transphobic legislation. Both of these studies are rooted in identity at the core, but what marks a meme as from a distinct country (aside from language)? What marks a trans meme? How do these memes feed into identity formation/amplification and impact the larger culture(s) in which they circulate? Jackson (2019) has begun answering some of these questions, tracing the similarities between memes and Black rhetorical traditions, showing that without Black knowledges and ways of speaking, memes would not exist. Similarly, Levesque DeCamp (2022) examines how memes, which are messy, resistant to classification, and community-based, are also inherently queer. She shows the ways memes are integral to queer identity formation and expression in digital spaces, explaining “memes are stories that tell us something about identity of both the self, and of one’s relationship to others in the community” (p. 177).
Chapters in this collection will extend these conversations and others to include more memetic perspectives around rhetorical identity, providing a richer understanding of how memes are intertwined with our identities, constructing and amplifying them both online and IRL. This collection prioritizes amplifying and centering work by minoritarian and multiply marginalized scholars and early career/junior scholars whose voices are integral to this conversation. In particular, this collection is primarily interested in ethnographic and autoethnographic studies of meme communities. Most studies of memes, at their core, are by nature autoethnographic because we often have to have to be part of these spaces to have access to and/or understand them. In addition, autoethnographic studies must include appropriate levels of security and protection for members of the meme community who may want to remain anonymous. As such, 500-750 word chapter proposals included the following:
One thing these studies and many others have in common but that isn’t always directly addressed is rhetorical identity. For instance, Mina (2019) provides us glimpses into Chinese, Ugandan, and Spanish political meming contexts, explaining how memes can be used to subvert dominant political power structures (while also delighting in the fact that so many countries use animal-based humor) and Spencer (2019) examines memes surrounding anti-trans bathroom bills, showing the ways that memes either support or reject the transphobic legislation. Both of these studies are rooted in identity at the core, but what marks a meme as from a distinct country (aside from language)? What marks a trans meme? How do these memes feed into identity formation/amplification and impact the larger culture(s) in which they circulate? Jackson (2019) has begun answering some of these questions, tracing the similarities between memes and Black rhetorical traditions, showing that without Black knowledges and ways of speaking, memes would not exist. Similarly, Levesque DeCamp (2022) examines how memes, which are messy, resistant to classification, and community-based, are also inherently queer. She shows the ways memes are integral to queer identity formation and expression in digital spaces, explaining “memes are stories that tell us something about identity of both the self, and of one’s relationship to others in the community” (p. 177).
Chapters in this collection will extend these conversations and others to include more memetic perspectives around rhetorical identity, providing a richer understanding of how memes are intertwined with our identities, constructing and amplifying them both online and IRL. This collection prioritizes amplifying and centering work by minoritarian and multiply marginalized scholars and early career/junior scholars whose voices are integral to this conversation. In particular, this collection is primarily interested in ethnographic and autoethnographic studies of meme communities. Most studies of memes, at their core, are by nature autoethnographic because we often have to have to be part of these spaces to have access to and/or understand them. In addition, autoethnographic studies must include appropriate levels of security and protection for members of the meme community who may want to remain anonymous. As such, 500-750 word chapter proposals included the following:
- Meme community/ies and/or identity/ies under study
- Positionality statement + connection to meme community/ies and/or identity/ies
- Steps taken to ensure safety and security of meme community/ies and/or identity/ies
Table of Contents
1. Derek M. Sparby
“Introduction”
2. Abbie Levesque DeCamp
“What does it meme?: Memes as methodology”
3. Elitza Kotzeva
“Rhetorical Ethics of Humor in War Memes”
4. Shiva Mainaly
“Memes of South Asian Immigrants in the USA as an Exercise in the Rhetoric of Intergenerational Communication”
5. Ada Hubrig
“That Trans, ‘Tism Rizz: On Trans and Neurodivergent Meme Communities”
6. Renee Barlow
“Meme Communities: Autistic and Other Neurodivergent People”
7. Alison A. Lukowski and Cody Reimer
“The Weight of Hypocrisy: Memes from the Patriot, Girther, and Body Positivity Movements”
8. Tynesha M. McCullers
“‘Ain’t Nobody Got Time for That!’: The Rhetorical Identity of Black Meme-Mixes in Digital Enclaves”
9. Kimberly Jenerette
“‘Like and Share if You’re a Girl with a Big Dick and an Even Bigger Heart’: The Gender Affirming Rhetoric of Modern Trans Meme Communities”
10. Jill Anne Chihak
“Thrillnetwork: Roller Coasters, Racism, and Meme-Rhetoric
11. Cindy Tekobbe
“New Media, Same Old White Supremacy: White Victimhood in the Production of Anti-CRT and Anti-DEI Memes”
12. Chelsea Bock
“‘Is this gay? Is this straight?’: Bisexual Memes as Devices to Correct Myths, Cement Identity, and Increase Visibility”
13. Johansen Quijano
“Procedurally Emergent Narrative and Participatory Culture in TikTok Memes: How Dabloon Cat, the Girlfriend Hostage Situation, and the Two Great TikTok Wars Recontextualize Creativity, Community, and Culture”
14. TBD
Afterword
“Introduction”
2. Abbie Levesque DeCamp
“What does it meme?: Memes as methodology”
3. Elitza Kotzeva
“Rhetorical Ethics of Humor in War Memes”
4. Shiva Mainaly
“Memes of South Asian Immigrants in the USA as an Exercise in the Rhetoric of Intergenerational Communication”
5. Ada Hubrig
“That Trans, ‘Tism Rizz: On Trans and Neurodivergent Meme Communities”
6. Renee Barlow
“Meme Communities: Autistic and Other Neurodivergent People”
7. Alison A. Lukowski and Cody Reimer
“The Weight of Hypocrisy: Memes from the Patriot, Girther, and Body Positivity Movements”
8. Tynesha M. McCullers
“‘Ain’t Nobody Got Time for That!’: The Rhetorical Identity of Black Meme-Mixes in Digital Enclaves”
9. Kimberly Jenerette
“‘Like and Share if You’re a Girl with a Big Dick and an Even Bigger Heart’: The Gender Affirming Rhetoric of Modern Trans Meme Communities”
10. Jill Anne Chihak
“Thrillnetwork: Roller Coasters, Racism, and Meme-Rhetoric
11. Cindy Tekobbe
“New Media, Same Old White Supremacy: White Victimhood in the Production of Anti-CRT and Anti-DEI Memes”
12. Chelsea Bock
“‘Is this gay? Is this straight?’: Bisexual Memes as Devices to Correct Myths, Cement Identity, and Increase Visibility”
13. Johansen Quijano
“Procedurally Emergent Narrative and Participatory Culture in TikTok Memes: How Dabloon Cat, the Girlfriend Hostage Situation, and the Two Great TikTok Wars Recontextualize Creativity, Community, and Culture”
14. TBD
Afterword
Estimated timeline
- Chapter proposals due (500-750 words): December 15, 2023
- Chapter proposals accepted: January 1, 2024
- Book proposal + TOC + introduction (4000 words) + chapter abstracts: April 15, 2024
- Chapter drafts due (5,000-7,000 words): July 1, 2024
- Afterword due: August 1, 2024
- Peer reviews returned: October 1, 2024
- Revised chapters due: January 1, 2025
- Manuscript submitted to press: January 15, 2025