Andra världskriget som intern(et)skämt : En studie om kulturell gemenskap på forumet r/ww2memes
(2023) HISS33 20231History
- Abstract
- World War II as an in(ternet)-joke : A study on cultural community on the forum r/ww2memes.
This master’s thesis examines the construction of community on the Reddit-forum r/ww2memes, dedicated to publishing and sharing internet memes concerning World War 2. By constructing a theoretical framework consisting of a certain use of history applied in presentist temporalities, herein referred to as appropriation of history, and a cultural theory purposed to analyze the digital culture of internet memes, perspective is created to make understanding of how history is communicated through history memes. The material, consisting of the 150 most popular internet memes on r/ww2memes through all time was approached through a methodology based in the... (More) - World War II as an in(ternet)-joke : A study on cultural community on the forum r/ww2memes.
This master’s thesis examines the construction of community on the Reddit-forum r/ww2memes, dedicated to publishing and sharing internet memes concerning World War 2. By constructing a theoretical framework consisting of a certain use of history applied in presentist temporalities, herein referred to as appropriation of history, and a cultural theory purposed to analyze the digital culture of internet memes, perspective is created to make understanding of how history is communicated through history memes. The material, consisting of the 150 most popular internet memes on r/ww2memes through all time was approached through a methodology based in the concept of narrative abbreviations, explained through World War 2 historiography, as well as a model to discern expressions of identity and belonging through internet memes, grounded in the concept of subaltern counterpublics. Through this methodology, the forum’s construction of World War 2 as a collection of fronts, battles and occurrences, specifically the invasion of Poland 1939, the invasion of France 1940, the Eastern Front 1941-1945, the Pacific War 1941-1945 and the Holocaust, was made visible. The study found that r/ww2memes predominantly communicates about World War 2 in uniting aspects, with knowledge, values and experience as their main expressions of unity and belonging. In regard to values, the study found that r/ww2memes creates identity through internet memes depicting World War 2 by constructing itself as sphere consisting of men, while also deprecating groups that show support to the Wehrmacht. The main findings regarding appropriation of history found that, through understanding communication of history in internet memes as a presentist process, history can be appropriated by the particular expressions typical for internet memes, as well as that the predominate historical ideas communicated on the forum can be traced to Western European and American historical cultural ideas, furthering the findings of construction of community on r/ww2memes as grounded in Western historical idea. Lastly, the study considered the communication of history on r/ww2memes as part of a larger perspective regarding communication of history on Web 2.0. The study concluded that the mechanics of the Web 2.0 platforms ruled by commercial interests affects the communication of history and is therefore a major field of interest for the historical sciences. (Less) - Popular Abstract (Swedish)
- I denna masteruppsats undersöks hur internetmemes om andra världskriget används på det Reddit-baserade forumet r/ww2memes för att bilda gemenskap. Eftersom internetmemes ofta saknar upphovsperson och tydligt ursprung studeras de här som allmänna kulturella fenomen, tillkomna genom deltagande på forumet, vilka genom humor ger uttryck för historiesyn och gemenskap. I syfte att genomföra studien har ett teoretiskt ramverk som möjliggör analys av historieanvändning i internetmemes konstruerats. I analysen har forumets 150 mest populära internetmemes analyserats som bestående av enande kulturella symboler vilka kännetecknar hur forumet bildar gemenskap. För att förstå forumets uttryck för historiesyn analyseras dessa internetmemes som bestående... (More)
- I denna masteruppsats undersöks hur internetmemes om andra världskriget används på det Reddit-baserade forumet r/ww2memes för att bilda gemenskap. Eftersom internetmemes ofta saknar upphovsperson och tydligt ursprung studeras de här som allmänna kulturella fenomen, tillkomna genom deltagande på forumet, vilka genom humor ger uttryck för historiesyn och gemenskap. I syfte att genomföra studien har ett teoretiskt ramverk som möjliggör analys av historieanvändning i internetmemes konstruerats. I analysen har forumets 150 mest populära internetmemes analyserats som bestående av enande kulturella symboler vilka kännetecknar hur forumet bildar gemenskap. För att förstå forumets uttryck för historiesyn analyseras dessa internetmemes som bestående av inslag från nationella historieskrivningar. Resultatet visade att andra världskriget-historien som förmedlades i internetmemes på r/ww2memes huvudsakligen gav uttryck för västerländska och amerikanska historieskrivningar, där stridigheter och fronter i Europa och Stilla havet var vanligast att anspela på. Gemenskapen på forumet bildades huvudsakligen kring enade synsätt på historieskrivning, utmärkande kunskaper om kriget och dess förlopp, en föreställning om forumet som ett utrymme för män samt en uppslutning kring värdet att berätta den föreställt riktiga historien, frigjord från romantiseringar av nazismen. Genom uppsatsens resultat framträder dessutom ett teoretiskt perspektiv som förklarar hur förmedling av historia i internetmemes bör förstås. Detta grundas i en samtida kulturell process där offentliga händelser och kunskaper, exempelvis sådant som berör historia, får en etablerad kulturell innebörd och omvandlas till referenspunkter vilka kan hänvisas till i internetmemes. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9119884
- author
- Schuurman, Aron LU
- supervisor
-
- Ulf Zander LU
- organization
- course
- HISS33 20231
- year
- 2023
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- World War 2, andra världskriget, internet memes, internetmemes, memes, Web 2.0, history memes, historiememes, historical culture, historiekultur, historieförmedling, community, gemenskap, appropriation, appropriering.
- language
- Swedish
- id
- 9119884
- date added to LUP
- 2023-10-24 09:47:35
- date last changed
- 2023-10-24 09:47:35
@misc{9119884,
abstract = {{World War II as an in(ternet)-joke : A study on cultural community on the forum r/ww2memes.
This master’s thesis examines the construction of community on the Reddit-forum r/ww2memes, dedicated to publishing and sharing internet memes concerning World War 2. By constructing a theoretical framework consisting of a certain use of history applied in presentist temporalities, herein referred to as appropriation of history, and a cultural theory purposed to analyze the digital culture of internet memes, perspective is created to make understanding of how history is communicated through history memes. The material, consisting of the 150 most popular internet memes on r/ww2memes through all time was approached through a methodology based in the concept of narrative abbreviations, explained through World War 2 historiography, as well as a model to discern expressions of identity and belonging through internet memes, grounded in the concept of subaltern counterpublics. Through this methodology, the forum’s construction of World War 2 as a collection of fronts, battles and occurrences, specifically the invasion of Poland 1939, the invasion of France 1940, the Eastern Front 1941-1945, the Pacific War 1941-1945 and the Holocaust, was made visible. The study found that r/ww2memes predominantly communicates about World War 2 in uniting aspects, with knowledge, values and experience as their main expressions of unity and belonging. In regard to values, the study found that r/ww2memes creates identity through internet memes depicting World War 2 by constructing itself as sphere consisting of men, while also deprecating groups that show support to the Wehrmacht. The main findings regarding appropriation of history found that, through understanding communication of history in internet memes as a presentist process, history can be appropriated by the particular expressions typical for internet memes, as well as that the predominate historical ideas communicated on the forum can be traced to Western European and American historical cultural ideas, furthering the findings of construction of community on r/ww2memes as grounded in Western historical idea. Lastly, the study considered the communication of history on r/ww2memes as part of a larger perspective regarding communication of history on Web 2.0. The study concluded that the mechanics of the Web 2.0 platforms ruled by commercial interests affects the communication of history and is therefore a major field of interest for the historical sciences.}},
author = {{Schuurman, Aron}},
language = {{swe}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Andra världskriget som intern(et)skämt : En studie om kulturell gemenskap på forumet r/ww2memes}},
year = {{2023}},
}