When You Think of "Internet"...
...what comes to your mind -- Do endless nights of Youtube or Netflix fill your thoughts? How about those ever so useful Wikipedia articles and how-to guides? Does Google's chaos of vast free information excite your bones? Personally, when I think of the Interweb and all its majesty--aside from all of my manga reading escapades--I think of memes. Yes, those funny, sometimes annoying, trends that you see rampaging all over Facebook, Twitter, and whatnot, are what I think of. Not only I, but apparently nearly every internet user has heard of their double-edged non-sense (by definition, a meme spreads into a culture like a wild fire, evolving and prospering further).
Who's El Rey of the Internet Realm?
I would argue that, even though they are more current and possibly just as popular, the Rage Face Comics memes cannot uphold to the glory of the King Meme. Any other meme that arises from simply captioning a free-frame of a TV show (image macro) or any meme that arise form celebrities doesn't even compare to it. Whereas many of these second rate memes have arisen from chat rooms, blogs, and other forums like 4Chan, the subject of this King Meme is one that has been active since the ancient times:
- Their relationship with us has lasted over 9,500 years!
- In Egypt, their were worshiped as, or associated, with cult deities.
- In China, they were favored pets.
- In Norse Mythology, they were fairies that could either bless your house OR steal your soul before it could reach the afterlife.
- In Russia, they were considered while in America, they're considered bad luck (not a surprise that they're opposites hahah)
Seriously, if you haven't guessed what I'm talking about, you've either been a hermit for the past 10 millennia and or you simply hate the fury subject -- no pun intended...actually, yes.
Cats!
Indeed, the craze over Felis catus is mankind's honorary meme. Ancient memes, such as in stone carving and the like, were as common as today's 4chan's lolcats. From anthropomorphic nonsense to simple cute pictures of kittens cuddling in a flower bed, CATS ARE EVERYWHERE.
The Same Has Become of the World's Ideologies.
Here's the juicy part. Aside from those who hate cats, many people forget the ugly side of cats. The social craze forgets they're animals -- (possibly) flea-infested felines that are utterly useless, unless they're used for pest control or for crazy street fight entertainment. They might serve for pet therapy, but their anti-social nature leaves this area for their counterpart, dog. They can't be used for rescue or as disability aid, again Canis lupis familiaris wins. So what happened, how did these cats become nearly idolized?
Allow me to present a parallel. At the end of WWII, America rose to the top as THE world superpower. America this, America that, everything American was considered golden...but America wasn't the only winner. Russia had gained a major victory over the Germans, and they too rose to the top. In short, terms known as Capitalism and Communism became terms that were considered paramount in their particular place of origin. It didn't matter what the term entailed -- that it meant social suffering or not -- it only mattered that the term was considered the best. Since their origins, the connotation of the terms have taken lives of their own. Today, as in then, the terms are quoted to what they're expected to be, not for what they were originally intended to be.
May it be any clearer? Communism/Capitalism is the flea-infested cat, that's only good for feeding. It's petted, made to be cute, and idolized. It's the rest of us clearheaded fools who have to clean up the cat poo.
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| To stay in the spirit of cat-a-mania, I've made a quick piece of art of Felicia, of Capcom's Darkstalkers. "Felicia". Steven Soto. 2013. Color pencils on 8.5" x 7.5" cut out, on 12" x 9" black cotton. |
I love how you brought in more information and tied it around the whole cat meme thing. It seems that your question of how did cats become so idolized could be link to other historical examples of how a leader or leaders quickly rose in admiration with his own people.
ReplyDeleteWow that was incredibly in depth Steven, I applaud you for being able to write so substantially on this topic. As always great artwork
ReplyDeleteI wonder what the first ever meme was. The first one I can remember, or at least the first one that ever made a substantial enough impact to remember it, was All Your Base Are Belong To Us. I wonder if anyone under the age of 28 even knows that one?
ReplyDeleteIt does seem like the riddle or mystery of the cat goes back a long while. Are you arguing that these ideological abstractions like capitalism and communism represent the same lure that is the cat--or the lure that is the cat video? Or are these all tied up somehow? If so, how so?
It seems like you follow the trend the article describes of seeing cats as a symbol of a kind of decadence or uselessness, whereas dogs are a symbol of useful companionship. Of course, it all depends on the cats, and a lot fewer people are hurt by cats than dogs, but what do you say to the people who derive real companionship from cats?
Nice art work as always.
Oh, and here's the original video that started the AYBABTU meme. Watch somebody set up us the bomb here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fvTxv46ano
And what's the name of the bad guy??? CATS! It all comes full circle!
Unfortunately, I never got the chance to play "Zero Wing", but I've the screenshot of that broken English somewhere on the net...
DeleteYes, I'm arguing a parallel: that these ideologies become treasured and nearly idolized, just as cats have been.
As far as the usefulness of dogs v. cats, although the dog is far more dangerous, I would argue that it's value (it's ability to provide) far exceeds that of the cat -- you can only receive companionship from a cat, that's all.
Hahah, a full circle indeed!
you can still download zero wing and play it on emulators. At least you already could back in 2000 when the All your base fad was first circulating.
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