The Meme Machine Analysis
In chapter one the book “The Meme Machine”, Susan Blackmore introduces concepts, offers benefits and compares the idea of a meme to a form of imitation that can be related to everyday human life as well as the effects on given community. As humans, Blackmore believes that we can pass on ideas, stories and theories from one person to another through various forms of memes. She also explains how memes are similar to genes through the theory of natural selection in which only the strong, more important genes will survive. Throughout “Strange Creatures” Blackmore emphasizes the effect of memes on communities whether they are on the individual or macroscopic level and how they affect diverse communities.
In “Strange Creatures”, Blackmore introduces …show more content…
In the book, Dawkins promotes the view of competition amongst all genes. When genes are passed down from one generation to the next, only the majority of the dominant traits are passed down. The idea emphasizes Darwin’s theory of natural selection in which only the strong survive also known as evolution. Dawkin’s believes that genes are selfish in a sense that they compete solely for themselves, trying to pass themselves down. In the same way, memes also have the same purpose, to pass themselves down. Blackmore portrays memes like genes, selfish.
“According to Dawkins, a meme is a unit of cultural meaning, such as an idea or a value, which is passed from one generation to another. A meme is the cultural counterpart to the unit of physical heredity, the gene.” (edit and …show more content…
For example, Blackmore introduces a positive example of memes which consist of new ideas and theories that scientists present to the world. A negative effect that Blackmore depicts in the quote is false advertising. People try to present false methods of advertisement, tricking a consumer into buying products that don’t really work. Lastly, a neutral example of a meme would be something bearable that occurs in everyone’s lives such as a song that plays on a radio that only appeals to a certain group of people. These types of memes, positive, negative and neutral, influence how people live in
In “Strange Creatures”, Blackmore introduces …show more content…
In the book, Dawkins promotes the view of competition amongst all genes. When genes are passed down from one generation to the next, only the majority of the dominant traits are passed down. The idea emphasizes Darwin’s theory of natural selection in which only the strong survive also known as evolution. Dawkin’s believes that genes are selfish in a sense that they compete solely for themselves, trying to pass themselves down. In the same way, memes also have the same purpose, to pass themselves down. Blackmore portrays memes like genes, selfish.
“According to Dawkins, a meme is a unit of cultural meaning, such as an idea or a value, which is passed from one generation to another. A meme is the cultural counterpart to the unit of physical heredity, the gene.” (edit and …show more content…
For example, Blackmore introduces a positive example of memes which consist of new ideas and theories that scientists present to the world. A negative effect that Blackmore depicts in the quote is false advertising. People try to present false methods of advertisement, tricking a consumer into buying products that don’t really work. Lastly, a neutral example of a meme would be something bearable that occurs in everyone’s lives such as a song that plays on a radio that only appeals to a certain group of people. These types of memes, positive, negative and neutral, influence how people live in