Memes:
My favorite meme of all time is probably the Boromir "One does not simply" meme. (I almost picked LOTR...) It's one of those that has a history and meaning behind the usage of the picture, but because it almost always includes the text, "one does not simply", it doesn't require as much background knowledge as other memes.If you are not familiar with Lord of the Rings, it may help to know some context of the image: The original line in the movie is "One does not simply walk into Mordor." Mordor is a super dark place always under the watchful psychic eye of the nigh-unbeatable warlord, Sauron. Not even the might of all the good wizards, elves, men, and etc. combined could hope to breach the gates of Mordor...so how could a group of nine even think it possible to just travel there and slip through the ever-present multitude of guards and armies? The meme's meaning is amplified when considering Boromir's history and experience with Mordor. He's the son of the steward of Minis Tirith, the city at the front lines in the battle with Sauron. He's seen first-hand its might and faced its armies with armies of his own.
A very common thread of Ender's Game memes and conversation online is the persona of Ender Wiggin. There are memes that talk about wanting to become him, memes that discuss his morals and achievements, and memes that express the aura of his reputation. I feel this Boromir meme sums this all up nicely. Trying to beat Ender Wiggin is like trying to simply walk past the eye of Sauron. This kid, as a General and tactical mastermind, is responsible for the near-genocide of the greatest threat humankind has ever faced in the Ender Universe, a threat that nearly wiped out the planet Earth in one go...One truly does not "simply beat Ender Wiggin."
This reputation of Ender's is actually more complicated than it may seem (especially if you've only seen the movie). In all of his novels, Orson Scott Card plays with a lot of concepts and morals in unique and deeply penetrating ways. The philosophical discussions that fill the white space of the books are especially apparent in the difference between the two child geniuses, Bean and Ender, two completely different persons, but both commanding some sort of aura and awe regarding their abilities. The meme comparing Bean and Ender on the left doesn't require much meme knowledge to dissect, as the Boromir meme might. It is an obvious comparison, with the two images and parallel statements placed side-by-side.Aside from simply making a comment on the books or on the philosophical threads I mentioned, this meme is a powerful discussion of how much societal upbringing and exposure to violence encourages violence in an individual. (A topic that is very hot at different times on the web, especially in reference to video games.) In the books, Ender has a constant struggle with his abilities/need to survive and the consequences of these. He never intentionally kills anyone, but he leaves a long line of dead behind him. Bean, on the other hand, is far more aware of the consequences and circumstances he is in than Ender. But he doesn't leave quite the same record of kills behind him. As the meme mentions, this is especially interesting because of the differences in their upbringing.
There are probably several purposes in sharing these memes. Communicating and sharing the enjoyment one gets out of experiencing a Card novel is the obvious answer. Part of meme culture is having this experience of "connection" with the author/sharers. This can be an "oh, I get it!" moment or a "that is so true!" moment, etc. But another aspect of this, I think, is that Card's novels provide a lot of material for debate, discussion, and supporting ideals/philosophies. Ender and Bean are heroes that can be looked up to, but they are extremely complicated and traumatized heroes. There are a lot of readers/internet users that connect with them on different levels, and they share the complexity and connection with other people on the web.
Fan Art:
A lot of the fan art for movies and books involves icons and characters from the novel. This is an image which exemplifies both:
I'd say this image displays medium technological skill. Elements from different places were selected, cut from the movie, fan art images, and movie posters/trailers. Then the artist composited them here. I'm fairly sure the logos were made by fans, (though possibly not by the artist who put all of these elements together into this image). The font, filters, and other tools used to edit the images are examples of template items the artist used, tools and elements he selected and applied to the image, using some sort of image editor. The artist took care to carefully cut the character shots and blend them into the background, but the image as a whole still has some feel of a montage. It's obviously a collection of elements, not a seamless whole, though probably more of a seamless whole than the early new media Manovich talks about. (The artist didn't go out of his way to express that the elements were from different origins; he deliberately chose to try and make them match each other and blend together).
This particular fan art image is intended to be used as desktop wallpaper. People often make fan art as a tribute to the original piece of art (novel or movie), but I think they also display it to connect with the original work, gain inspiration from it again. Fan art can also be an interpretation or statement on the original work. People sometimes use it to fill in the gaps the original author left out or create the original in the way they imagine/think it should have been done.
Images from:
http://artofdarian.blogspot.com/2012/03/jeesh-desktop-images.html
http://www.endersansible.com/enders-game-memes/
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