Abstract
Internet meme contents have been drawn a considerable amount of attention through social media in recent days. Internet memes are conceptually derived from the word ‘meme’ coined by Richard Dawkins, but there is a difference between this and the meme concept as used in academic research. Internet memes not only exist in much more complex forms, such as images, videos, and music, but also spread at an unprecedented speed compared to the concepts in the past given the use of various forms of media, such as social networking services (SNS), websites, and text messaging. In particular, it is noteworthy that a type of play culture has arisen through digital media, where users enjoy creating and sharing internet memes on their own. Therefore, this study approaches the internet meme as a type of play culture in the digital age and examines its cultural meaning and value. The subjects in this study are set as specific examples of challenging content, which provoke the voluntary participation and diffusion of many SNS users today; they will be examined for their essential meanings and play characteristics based on Fink's play ontology and a framework of analysis consisting of five play structures. Ultimately, it is expected that the cultural meaning and value of the Internet meme will be re-examined and that theoretical foundations and research methods will be prepared in relation to this.
Published Version
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