Book contents
- The Language of Memes
- The Language of Memes
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- 1 Why Study Memes from the Linguistic Perspective?
- 2 Memes and Multimodal Figuration
- 3 Image Macro Memes
- 4 Labelling Memes
- 5 Memetic Grids
- 6 Memetic Use of Personal Pronouns
- 7 Say, Tell, and Be Like Meme Constructions
- 8 Embedding Discourse Spaces without Say Verbs
- 9 Memetic Form and Memetic Meaning
- 10 Memetic Discourse on Social Media Platforms
- 11 Memes and Advertising
- 12 One Does Not Simply Draw a Conclusion
- References
- Index
3 - Image Macro Memes
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 September 2025
Book contents
- The Language of Memes
- The Language of Memes
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- 1 Why Study Memes from the Linguistic Perspective?
- 2 Memes and Multimodal Figuration
- 3 Image Macro Memes
- 4 Labelling Memes
- 5 Memetic Grids
- 6 Memetic Use of Personal Pronouns
- 7 Say, Tell, and Be Like Meme Constructions
- 8 Embedding Discourse Spaces without Say Verbs
- 9 Memetic Form and Memetic Meaning
- 10 Memetic Discourse on Social Media Platforms
- 11 Memes and Advertising
- 12 One Does Not Simply Draw a Conclusion
- References
- Index
Summary
This chapter introduces the distinction between entrenched images or Image Macros (IMs) and Non-Entrenched Images (NEIs), and focuses most of its discussion on examples involving IMs that feature the characteristic ‘Top Text’ (TT) and ‘Bottom Text’ (BT), such as the One Does Not Simply and Good Girl Gina memes (ODNS and GGG). It shows how these IM memes allow Meme Makers to categorize experiences very quickly, efficiently and (if successful) humorously, adding further examples to such categories as ‘futile undertakings that are impossible to achieve’ (ODNS) or ‘virtuous behaviour of highly considerate women’ (GGG), thanks in large part to the frames evoked visually. It also discusses aspects of the construction grammar approach to language, as applicable to these meme constructions, including specific constructional properties of GGG memes and the constructional networks they fit into.
Keywords
Information
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Language of MemesPatterns of Meaning Across Image and Text, pp. 26 - 42Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2025
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