What is a meme?
A quick Google search says that a meme is “an image, video, piece of text, etc., typically humorous in nature, that is copied and spread rapidly by internet users, often with slight variations.”
This makes sense because no two memes are the same. There is no such thing as a bad meme. All you need is a clip from the media, a photo, or even a poorly made drawing. The best way to tell if something is a meme is the iconic Impact font as the caption. If it’s not, then what are you doing?
In all seriousness, though, after all the memes I have scoured the internet for, there are a few that always come back to my mind. In this article, I will be sharing my top three memes and where they came from. I’ll be learning too as I research this article, so let’s get started!
Roll safe
This, by far, has to be my favorite meme! It’s used for critical thinking and poor decision-making. Tons of people get creative with this one, from school to relationships and more. The image is a still from BBC Three’s Hood Documentary miniseries, starring Kayode Ewumi pointing to his temple and smiling. Ewumi portrays the character of Reese Simpson (aka “Roll Safe”) in this specific episode called “Happy Belated.” Here, he talks about a woman being beautiful because of her brains.
Side-eying chloe
This still came from a video (from The Clem Family channel) where two girls, Lily and Chloe Clem, learn that they are going to Disneyland together. Lily is ecstatic, but Chloe just gives the viewer a hilarious side-eye! If I could describe this meme in one word, I would say “bruh,” because this is literally what goes on in my head when I say this word. It can be used in response to what someone is doing or if you are just simply confused. Chloe may have grown up now, but this never gets old.
Distracted boyfriend
This particular meme was shown in one of my CMCI classes when our instructor was explaining what a meme was. This meme is a stock image created by a man named Antonio Guillem. It is actually a part of a series of other photos with the same photographer and models. The original photo’s title was “Disloyal man with his girlfriend looking at another girl.” This particular photo is of a man who is distracted by a girl, while he obviously has a jealous girlfriend. There are other photos with the same actors with a surprising plot twist — the two women actually end up getting together, leaving the man behind! Guillem took more photos where, in an alternate universe, it is a woman with a boyfriend looking at a different man (but with different models). This meme would be used when you know you have something, but you want to have something else, too. I could use this meme for countless scenarios in everyday life!
I am a forever lover of memes. If I am having a bad day, I can look up memes, and 99.9% of the time, they make me feel better almost instantly. That’s why I love this generation. Where the Internet is prevalent, people can spread goodness through humor. You know what they say: laughter is the best medicine!