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Cited by 72Rhetoric and Communication StudiesHumor Studies and ApplicationsCommunication Studies and Media

Mapping the Meme: A Geographical Approach to Materialist Rhetorical Criticism

Johnson, Davi·2007·Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies
DOI 10.1080/14791420601138286
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Abstract

Memetics, the emerging and contested “science” of the meme, has much to offer critical communication studies. The meme, a replicator that functions as the basic unit of cultural change, is a valuable practical tool for rhetorical critics, and it is particularly useful for critical/cultural analysts interested in the seemingly superficial and trivial elements of popular culture. In addition to its functional utility, memetics issues a productive theoretical challenge to that trajectory of communication scholarship that seeks to further the materialist rhetorical project by developing and deploying the ideograph, the only significant methodological tool developed for the purposes of materialist criticism. Through a contrast between the “geographical” meme and the “historical” ideograph, I explore the utility of the meme as a productive concept for the analysis of contemporary culture.

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Authors
Johnson, D.
Affiliations
Southwestern University (US)
Corresponding author
Johnson, Davi
Venue
Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies
Publisher
Informa UK Limited
Published
2007-03
Volume
4
Issue
1
Pages
27-50
ISSN
  • 1479-1420 (ISSN-L)
  • 1479-4233
DOI
10.1080/14791420601138286
OpenAlex
W2071859266
Cited by
72
References
0
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 4 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 5 · 2012: 1
FWCI
18.25
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Philosophy › Rhetoric and Communication Studies
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Humor Studies and Applications
  • Social Sciences › Communication › Communication Studies and Media
Keywords
memetics, memes, ideograms, popular culture, cultural change, replicators, contemporary culture

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