New Gen Memes vs Old Gen Memes

The definition of meme is an image, video, piece of text, typically humorous that spreads through internet When I asked Ms. Alahna, a paraeducator at TMMS, whether she liked new-gen or old-gen memes, she said old-gen. Alahna stated her favorite old-gen meme was “road work ahead.” “Road work ahead? I sure hope it does!” Alahna’s explanation for why it was so funny was simply, “It just is.” I asked what other old-gen memes she liked, and she said, “Look at all those chickens.” When I asked what comes back to her when she sees these memes, she said, “Childhood, man, you know?” She later said that old-gen memes are better than new-gen memes because “they’re just funnier.” Kasen Sarber, eighth grader at TMMS, prefers old-gen memes. “I don’t like this brain-rot stuff. It’s lowkey frying me.” However, Kasen was completely unfamiliar with any old-gen memes. His favorite new-gen meme is “Skibidi Toilet.” He was unable to explain why it was funny. At that point, I realized he didn’t really have a clear preference. Mr. Wes, an ELA teacher at TMMS, stated he also liked old-gen memes over new-gen. He then showed me some of his favorites, which were in a YouTube playlist called “Important Videos.” He said, “Eighty percent of these videos, you can turn on, leave the room, come back, and they will still make you laugh.” He showed me one of the videos called “Turkish man yelling meow at an egg.” After watching it, I asked him what kind of nostalgia it gave him. He said, “This reminds me of a simpler internet, where playlists were a thing and not mindless TikTok scrolling.” He also said, “Whoever made this playlist is brilliant.” I asked if he had any favorite new-gen memes, and he said no. I gave him an example of a new-gen meme, “six seven,” and he said, “Six seven hurts me badly.” When I asked why, he said, “Because I’m six-seven.” Isaac Annan, an eighth grader at TMMS prefers new-gen memes. Annan’s favorite meme is “Khaby Lame mechanism.” His explanation for why he found it funny was, “Because it’s niche.” He explained that old-gen memes also mean a lot to him because he grew up with them. He said one meme he cherishes is, “He on X Games mode.”