Memetics: Planes of Irony

     To truly understand esoteric memetics, one must grasp the different planes of irony and how they directly affect a meme's value.
    

meme (mēm)

• n.
  A unit of cultural information, such as a cultural practice or idea, that is transmitted verbally or by repeated action from one mind to another.

     The dictionary definition of meme is rather broad, but when speaking about memes in modern culture, especially when using adjectives such as "normie, dank, edgy, or wholesome," meme refers to any image that presents the viewer with an idea, concept, or satirical reference to something. Many modern memes have been essentially labeled propaganda by certain members of the left due to their nature of promoting ideas, but we will discuss that more as we progress in our 4chan series. If you want a quick example now, look no further than here.

propaganda (prŏpˌə-gănˈdə)

• n.
  The systematic propagation of a doctrine or cause or of information reflecting the views and interests of those advocating such a doctrine or cause.

     Most memes, however, in their purest form, are meant to give the viewer a good chuckle, or for the "dank memer," to turn something dark into an object of hilarity. To those who are unfamiliar with the side of silicon valley with free reigns, this comes as shocking, and even a thing of great concern, but this is simply not the case. As the world we live in appears to grow darker, a natural method of human coping has always been to relieve that heaviness. For the drunkard, drug, or sex addict, physical pleasure is their means of escape. Consequentially, these thinks when done out of moderation can cause great damage to the body. Finding a way to laugh at the irony, chance, and poetry of life not only gives us a healthy relief to our surroundings, but helps us view the situations with a little more light. 

     Let's face it: the world is a dark place. It should therefore come as no surprise that dark humor can be found in many online commons. Dark humor is much deeper, personal, and applicable than humor from something unrelated to whatever issues are prevalent, and likewise allows individuals to laugh about their deeper struggles and problems. One could argue that exposing the issues of the world in this nature spreads awareness of them and makes them easier to solve, because acknowledgement of an issue as an issue is the first major step towards fixing it. Recent studies have shown that dark humor is linked to higher intelligence. With the way black humor is being used to acknowledge issues, it logically follows that individuals who are more entertained by dark humor are also individuals who understand the issues presented in it clearly. For more information on these studies, you can click here.

So What Determines the Comedic Value of a Meme?

irony (īˈrə-nē, īˈər-)

• n.
  The use of words to express something different from and often opposite to their literal meaning.
• n.
  An expression or utterance marked by a deliberate contrast between apparent and intended meaning.
• n.
  A literary style employing such contrasts for humorous or rhetorical effect. 

     While this isn't an easy question to answer, we can generally measure irony to find how much enjoyment a meme will bring and how deep it goes. Understanding the planes of irony is key when it comes to understanding esoteric memetics today. As more and more people continue to dive into the world of memes, finding esoteric content becomes more and more difficult, and the lines between planes of irony can be easily blurred. The easiest way I feel to explain what the planes of irony are and how they work is by directly showing you through memes.

FIRST PLANE OF IRONY - "NORMIE"

     The very nature of memes makes them necessarily ironic in at least the most basic forms. (Realistic situation compared to a reaction to something that is not the realistic situation) Memes within the first plane of irony often spoonfeed the viewer the irony, and don't require any greater understanding to perceive the intended humor. These memes are often dubbed "normie" by those within the meme community because of their quantity and their use in the mainstream world. Originally, memes from the first plane were indentified easily by the signature "top text bottom text" format in impact font. Many first planers have begun to disguise these memes by using other formats, and so identifying first plane memes should not be considered a simple matter of format and font identity.

SECOND PLANE OF IRONY - NEWBIE

      The second plane of irony deals with two simaultaneous ironic events occuring at the same time. Often as easy as a well picked twitter screenshot, memes from the second plane of irony were originally and often still are referred to as "dank" by many. The viewer has to find for themselves the irony and humor within a second plane meme, but the irony is still to be found on a surface level. Memes from the second plane of irony swept the internet in 2015 and 2016 and have slowly become more mainstream as time has progressed. Memes from the second plane of irony are more likely to use dark humor than those of the first plane, but overall can still be thought of as fairly "wholesome."

THIRD PLANE OF IRONY - DANK

     In the third plane of Irony, memes begin to either combine or require further context to be grasped. The above meme, "Peter Parker Reading a Book," is a meme from the second plane of irony, but it also refers to the Priest unit in Age of Empires II and his iconic "Wololo" phrase he mutters when asked to perform a certain task. The Third plane will not hand the viewer the irony or humor, but the viewer must instead have knowledge from outside of the meme's provision to fully understand and appreciate its value. The ability to understand a third plane meme is like solving a puzzle or stumbling on buried treasure. The increased dopamine output from the brain that the cultured individual receives is what arguably makes the third plane the sweet spot in memes where 

FOURTH PLANE OF IRONY - WOKE

     The fourth plane, or the "self-aware plane," is where things start to get real funky. In plays, movies, or other forms of performance, breaking the fourth wall is when someone or something from within the performance becomes aware of the existence of the audience, and that they are in fact, within a performance. Fourth Plane memes are similar in this sense, but do not necessarily allude directly to leaving or interacting with that which is outside of the fourth wall. Instead, many of these memes (such as the one above) will simply take what would be considered normal within the meme or its format and rearrange, distort, remove, or add to it, creating an implied self-awareness. In my personal experience, fourth plane memes are quite uncommon, so if you see one, make sure you keep it somewhere safe from the coppers. 

FIFTH PLANE OF IRONY - ASCENDED

A meme self-aware of the self-aware meme it is built off of. A novel concept, yes? Reaching the fifth plane of irony is not at all an easy task. Very few memes in the present day have ever succeeded in reaching this level of irony. We can only hope that the future holds more of them. May the dubs be in your favor, fifth plane.

~~ GOING BEYOND THE FIFTH PLANE OF IRONY ~~

     While we are aware of the existence of planes beyond the fifth plane of irony, its a chaotic jungle frontier which few have ever been brave enough to traverse. I myself have never ascended beyond the fifth plane, but can only hope that I too may delve deeper into memetics and better understand the metaphysical. Rumors of the powers one gains when ascending further into the planes include, but are not limited to: the ability to summon karma at will, declaring meme jihad, and manifesting and creating meme magic. It is assumed that when one crosses over the ethereal plane, they gain the ability to manipulate time and space itself within multiverses dealing within the laws of subatomic particles.

     The final plane of irony is thought to be that which Keksandra resides in, and one in which only she is able to comprehend. Even after years of extensive research, no human being has been able to tap into the ironic field after passing through the ethereal plane. Browman et al. [2016] estimates that the level of memeing that Keksandra is separated by "anywhere between six and eight further undiscovered levels of memeing. Many other papers have theorized where Keksandra's meme level exists, but none of them have concrete evidence to support the theories. Bao and Wang [2016] theorized that Keksandra's level of memery taps into quantum loop gravity in specific universes within the mutiverses found in subatomic particles. 

     It is estimated that the first contact with Keksandra's meme levels is set to occur between the years 2340 and 2360 AD, should instruments that are capable of penetrating multiverses within subatomic particles be available anywhere between the present and the cutoff year of 2300. Work into accessing the next dimension of memes is ongoing and the barrier separating the current deepest level and the next level is said to be close. 

Some leaders in the field of memetics that are known to have excelled beyond the fifth plane in more modern times include celebrities like Nicola Tesla, Donald J Trump, and Rick Sanchez. While most of these men's secrets are kept hidden away from the public, their works are reflected in the current metaphysical timeline, which shows us that they are/were indeed ascended beyond the fifth plane.

      

     Keep meming and keep trying to understand memetics. Maybe someday you too will be a leader in meme studies. Sometime, hopefully in the near future, we will publish more articles on this blogg about Meme Magic and other metaphysical aspects that tie into memetics. Until then, Shadilay, my brethren. 

Browman, R., FIelds, K., & Sherman, F. (2016). Estimation of the location of Keksandra's level of ironic internet culture. Quantum Memeing Weekly, 54(14):746-755

Bao, X., & Wang, C. (2016). Theoretical powers of Keksandra's memes: An insight into Keksandra and her untapped memeing ability. Subatomic Memeology. 228(37):1898-1914