FROM LOL TO ??: THE RETENTION OF MEANING IN MEMES ACROSS ENGLISH-SPEAKING AND CHINESE-SPEAKING CULTURES
Date of Award
2023
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelors
Department
Humanities
First Advisor
Zhang, Jing
Area of Concentration
Chinese Language and Culture
Abstract
This thesis is about the differences and similarities between the memes found on Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr, Reddit, and other similar social media platforms, and the memes found on Douban,Weibo,Weixin, and other similar social media platforms. The reason this subject matter was chosen is because of the conflicting, but valid, perspectives that exist on the ability of humans across different cultures to convey sentiments ordinarily expressed to an in-group, outside of the in-group. While the discussion will continue to take place, this thesis offers a newer perspective, being that all concepts in memes exist on a continuum from untranslatable to translatable, and challenges the very same continuum by adding the layer of context associated with the translation. The aim of this thesis is to bring forth the idea that nothing is truly untranslatable.
Recommended Citation
Miller, Gaz, "FROM LOL TO ??: THE RETENTION OF MEANING IN MEMES ACROSS ENGLISH-SPEAKING AND CHINESE-SPEAKING CULTURES" (2023). Theses & ETDs. 6398.
https://digitalcommons.ncf.edu/theses_etds/6398