A couple physiological analogies are especially common throughout the discourse regarding memes: viruses and you can genes
Brand new meme-as-virus analogy observes the new resemblance ranging from memes and you will state representatives. Delivering epidemiology as the design, they considers memes the social equivalents out-of flu bacilli, transmitted through the communicational competitors of sneezes ( Alvarez, 2004). Into the Internet people, it metaphor is actually commonplace throughout the extremely obvious commentary to your “viral” content. Yet , Jenkins mais aussi al. ( 2009) truly believe this metaphor has been utilized in the a problematic way, conceptualizing individuals because the powerless and you will couch potato animals, at the mercy of new domination out-of meaningless news “snacks” one infect its thoughts.
So it conceptualization of men and women once the effective agents is highly befitting focusing on how memes traveling to the digital path, especially if exploring times where initial meaning of a good meme was significantly altered during the time of its diffusion
The next common physiological metaphor for memes -drawing right from Dawkins’ works-requires evolutionary genetics as its design. However, certain works keeps “pressed the fresh new example towards the gene so you’re able to its analytical extremes” from the trying to social counterparts for all dominating evolutionary genetic rules, and additionally genotype, phenotype, transcription, and you may code ( Alvarez, 2004, p. 25). This efforts are slammed not merely due to the fact memes react most differently than genes ( Atran, 2001), as well as as reduction of culture to help you biology narrows and you may simplifies state-of-the-art people practices. The fresh prevalent notion is actually for this reason that meme-gene example should be removed with many different grains from sodium ( Blackmore, 1999). （更多…）