Curtis, Piper (2024) Alternative Instagram Memes: Intersectional Community and Collaborative Storytelling in the Digital Age. Masters thesis, Concordia University.
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Abstract
Memes are an increasingly popular medium for self-expression in a digital context. On the social media site Instagram, queer and politically-left meme creators are subverting hegemonic power dynamics to present humorous and original memes, with sincere self-representation at their core: what I designate, alternative Instagram memes. Queer people often face discrimination and social exclusion in their local communities, exacerbated by the isolating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which leads many to seek out and forge digital communities of their own. In this research-creation project, I analyze the themes and discourse present in alternative Instagram memes posted by myself and by my peers to examine how this content and the community around it forms a digital intimate public. The expansion of #deardiarymemes, an interactive meme project based on anonymous confessions, exemplifies how memes function as digital storytelling tools and is central to this research. Through a curated series of memes by myself and by my peers as well as 41 new #deardiarymemes, this work builds on existing meme scholarship using feminist theorypractice to present a previously unstudied aspect of meme culture: a subversive, leftist meme community sprouting from the social media site Instagram.
| Divisions: | Concordia University > Faculty of Arts and Science > Communication Studies |
|---|---|
| Item Type: | Thesis (Masters) |
| Authors: | Curtis, Piper |
| Institution: | Concordia University |
| Degree Name: | M.A. |
| Program: | Media Studies |
| Date: | 19 March 2024 |
| Thesis Supervisor(s): | Renzi, Alessandra |
| Keywords: | research-creation, memes, Instagram, intimate public, confession, digital storytelling, queer |
| ID Code: | 993664 |
| Deposited By: | Piper Curtis |
| Deposited On: | 04 Jun 2024 15:23 |
| Last Modified: | 04 Jun 2024 15:23 |
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