Memetics
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| + | "[[Language is a virus]]" | ||
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| + | "The subject-matter of art consists of feelings which can be spread from man to man, feelings which are " [[contagious]] " or "infectious.""--"[[What Is Art?]]" (1897) by Leo Tolstoy | ||
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| [[Image:Mona_Lisa.jpeg|thumb|right|200px|''[[Mona Lisa]]'' (c. 1503–1519) is an [[oil painting]] by [[Leonardo da Vinci]], one of the most [[famous painting]]s in the world.]] | [[Image:Mona_Lisa.jpeg|thumb|right|200px|''[[Mona Lisa]]'' (c. 1503–1519) is an [[oil painting]] by [[Leonardo da Vinci]], one of the most [[famous painting]]s in the world.]] | ||
| {{Template}} | {{Template}} | ||
| - | According to [[memetics|memetic]] theory, a '''meme''' — a unit of [[culture|cultural]] [[information]], [[Sociocultural evolution|cultural evolution]] or [[cultural diffusion|diffusion]] — propagates from one mind to another [[analogy|analogous]]ly to the way in which a [[gene]] propagates from one organism to another as a unit of [[genetics|genetic]] information and of biological [[evolution]]. | + | '''Memetics''' is a controversial theory of [[mental content]] based on an analogy with [[Darwinian evolution]], originating from the popularization of [[Richard Dawkins]]' 1976 book ''[[The Selfish Gene]].'' It purports to be an approach to [[evolutionary model]]s of cultural [[information transfer]]. |
| - | [[Biologist]] and evolutionary theorist [[Richard Dawkins]] coined the term ''meme'' in 1976. He gave as examples tunes, catch-phrases, beliefs, clothing fashions, ways of making pots, and the technology of building arches. | + | The [[meme]], analogous to a [[gene]], was conceived as a "unit of culture" (an idea, belief, pattern of behaviour, etc.) which is "hosted" in one or more individual minds, and which can reproduce itself, thereby jumping from mind to mind. Thus what would otherwise be regarded as one individual influencing another to adopt a belief is seen—when adopting the [[intentional stance]] —as an idea-replicator reproducing itself in a new host. As with genetics, particularly under a [[Gene-centered view of evolution|Dawkinsian]] interpretation, a meme's success may be due to its contribution to the effectiveness of its host. |
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| + | Memetics is also notable for sidestepping the traditional concern with the ''[[truth]]'' of ideas and beliefs. Instead, it is interested in their success. | ||
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| + | The Usenet newsgroup alt.memetics started in 1993 with peak posting years in the mid to late 1990s. The ''Journal of Memetics'' was published electronically from 1997 to 2005. | ||
| - | Meme theorists contend that memes evolve by [[natural selection]] similarly to [[Charles Darwin]]'s theory of [[biology|biological]] [[evolution]] through the processes of [[variation]], [[mutation]], [[competition]], and inheritance influencing an organism's reproductive success. So with memes, some ideas will propagate less successfully and become [[extinction|extinct]], while others will survive, spread, and, for better or for worse, [[mutation|mutate]]. Memeticists argue that the memes most beneficial to their hosts will not necessarily survive; rather, those memes that replicate the most effectively spread best, which allows for the possibility that successful memes may prove detrimental to their hosts. | ||
| - | The idea of memes has proved a successful meme in its own right, gaining a degree of penetration into [[popular culture]] rare for an abstract [[scientific theory]]. | ||
| ==See also== | ==See also== | ||
| * [[Biosemiotics]] | * [[Biosemiotics]] | ||
| * [[Darwin machine]] | * [[Darwin machine]] | ||
| - | * [[Dual inheritance theory]] | + | *[[Cultural selection theory]] |
| + | *[[Dual inheritance theory]] | ||
| + | *[[Egregore]] | ||
| * [[Evolutionary biology]] | * [[Evolutionary biology]] | ||
| + | *[[Evolutionary epistemology]] | ||
| + | *[[General semantics]] | ||
| + | *[[Human-based genetic algorithm]]s | ||
| * [[Internet meme]] | * [[Internet meme]] | ||
| - | * [[List of Internet phenomena]] | + | *[[Knowledge ecosystem]] |
| + | *[[Meme pool]] | ||
| + | *[[Mentifact]] | ||
| * [[Mimicry]] | * [[Mimicry]] | ||
| + | *[[Phage]] | ||
| * [[Psycholinguistics]] | * [[Psycholinguistics]] | ||
| + | *[[Seme (semantics)]] | ||
| * [[Sociocultural evolution]] | * [[Sociocultural evolution]] | ||
| - | * [[Universal Darwinism]] | + | *[[Social constructionism]] |
| - | * [[Viral marketing]] | + | *[[Social osmosis]] |
| + | *[[Sociofact]] | ||
| + | *[[Sociotype]] | ||
| + | *[[Spime]] | ||
| + | *[[The Electronic Revolution]] | ||
| + | *[[Universal Darwinism]] | ||
| + | *[[Viral marketing]] | ||
| * [[Viral phenomenon]] | * [[Viral phenomenon]] | ||
| + | |||
| {{GFDL}} | {{GFDL}} | ||
Revision as of 10:49, 14 August 2020
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"The subject-matter of art consists of feelings which can be spread from man to man, feelings which are " contagious " or "infectious.""--"What Is Art?" (1897) by Leo Tolstoy |
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Memetics is a controversial theory of mental content based on an analogy with Darwinian evolution, originating from the popularization of Richard Dawkins' 1976 book The Selfish Gene. It purports to be an approach to evolutionary models of cultural information transfer.
The meme, analogous to a gene, was conceived as a "unit of culture" (an idea, belief, pattern of behaviour, etc.) which is "hosted" in one or more individual minds, and which can reproduce itself, thereby jumping from mind to mind. Thus what would otherwise be regarded as one individual influencing another to adopt a belief is seen—when adopting the intentional stance —as an idea-replicator reproducing itself in a new host. As with genetics, particularly under a Dawkinsian interpretation, a meme's success may be due to its contribution to the effectiveness of its host.
Memetics is also notable for sidestepping the traditional concern with the truth of ideas and beliefs. Instead, it is interested in their success.
The Usenet newsgroup alt.memetics started in 1993 with peak posting years in the mid to late 1990s. The Journal of Memetics was published electronically from 1997 to 2005.
See also
- Biosemiotics
- Darwin machine
- Cultural selection theory
- Dual inheritance theory
- Egregore
- Evolutionary biology
- Evolutionary epistemology
- General semantics
- Human-based genetic algorithms
- Internet meme
- Knowledge ecosystem
- Meme pool
- Mentifact
- Mimicry
- Phage
- Psycholinguistics
- Seme (semantics)
- Sociocultural evolution
- Social constructionism
- Social osmosis
- Sociofact
- Sociotype
- Spime
- The Electronic Revolution
- Universal Darwinism
- Viral marketing
- Viral phenomenon
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Memetics" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
