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Start Date
23-6-2022 12:00 AM
End Date
23-6-2022 12:00 AM
Abstract
Whether it be sea shanties being sung across the globe as a collective expression of a singular slog through the pandemic, or the pass the brush challenge’s many minority or subcultural variations, memetic video allows for individuals to contribute towards a larger collective chorus. The adaptability of memetic video to shift ideological message without shifting the structure of the meme and the affordances of TikTok as a social media platform provide a low barrier for entry for collaborators. Allowing participants to literally join a singular chorus as in the case of the “sea-shanty” or to allow historically excluded groups to figuratively create their own chorus using the “glow-up” format to highlight cultural expression and understandings of beauty. Though these are only two examples of memetic videos, they highlight two distinct approaches to collaborative or collective creative work within digital culture to be explored in this presentation.
Reinventing the Sea Shanty and Other Memetic Video as Collective Chorus
Whether it be sea shanties being sung across the globe as a collective expression of a singular slog through the pandemic, or the pass the brush challenge’s many minority or subcultural variations, memetic video allows for individuals to contribute towards a larger collective chorus. The adaptability of memetic video to shift ideological message without shifting the structure of the meme and the affordances of TikTok as a social media platform provide a low barrier for entry for collaborators. Allowing participants to literally join a singular chorus as in the case of the “sea-shanty” or to allow historically excluded groups to figuratively create their own chorus using the “glow-up” format to highlight cultural expression and understandings of beauty. Though these are only two examples of memetic videos, they highlight two distinct approaches to collaborative or collective creative work within digital culture to be explored in this presentation.
Bio
Tanya D. Zuk earned her Ph.D. at Georgia State University where she currently works as a lecturer. She has recently co-edited an interdisciplinary collection around Carrie Fisher and Princess Leia, entitled Our Blessed Rebel Queen (Wayne State University Press). Her research includes work on LGBTQ+ transmedia storytelling, collaborative authorship, fan studies, and television studies.