John McGovern
The College of Wooster emphasizes tradition pretty often, at times possibly to a fault. Tartan patterns, athletic involvement and the annual “fill the arch halfway at risk of getting tasered” event adorn the campus advertisements and tours. One tradition comes from pointing out the idiosyncrasies the populace encounters every semester. Performed by many groups, pointing out inclusive own flaws and oddities can bring about an atmosphere of connection and collective identity.
A recent facebook page entitled “College of Wooster Memes,” exemplifies this tradition. A meme, coined by the evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins, resembles a human gene, but evolves culturally to diversify and pass on its traits. The internet memes utilized by the page consist of an image, usually of a person or animal, with a line of text above and below. To the untrained eye, many of the images are undecipherable, however the existence (and success) of sites like memegenerator.net or knowyourmeme.com easily lets the user in on the jokes.
The issues raised on the page range from friendly jabs, such as lanyards on first-years, to well-established gripes about campus facilities, like the lack of dining options. The sheer diversity of memes used not only verifies that this campus goes online far too frequently, but shows how eager participants are to contribute. Moreover, students and alumni can express legitimate criticism without fearing any immediate reproach. The informal gathering concerning issues everyone on campus endures, through a neutral and infinitely diverse medium, grants students an invitation to discussion with a very low barrier to entry.
Too often traditional outlets of criticism seem antagonistic and unhelpful. Passive-aggressive notes adorn many public utilities. Pamphlets posted on exterior doors seem more like an individual yelling at the student body than a call to action. The Voice is no exception, and too often adequate claims succumb to ill-deciphered language and intentions. The meme’s format is short and funny, quick and poignant; all to achieve a more meaningful dialogue.
The playful manner of the page exists as of Tuesday, and hopefully will remain for the page’s likely short existence. This is not to say the page isn’t funny or popular, for it has grown very rapidly in its infancy, but that in general internet phenomena zip through culture and leave behind dormant domain names. What remains noble about this particular endeavor lies in its ability to retain a friendly atmosphere. Too often this campus experiences web phenomena and it quickly turns to nasty bickering and untruthful disgust. Juicy Campus was probably the worst, and Like-A-Little consists of more than a few insults towards cliques like Greek life and various sports teams. At present, the only divide in the memes stems from which side of Lowry one prefers to sit at while eating meals. Personal attacks or arguments against whole social groups seem ignored at the moment, fortunately.
The page won’t necessarily create a large impact on campus identity, nor will it likely succeed in maintaining a constant stream of new content for a long period of time. Props are in order for the creator, however, in recognizing the simplicity of local communication through memes. It shows how even at a diverse and divided campus as Wooster, we can all agree to vent on some things. Like Double Core — what the hell.