Galbo, J., and U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Romantic Safety Tips - Space Heater. 2017. Bethesda, M.D.: U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2019666517/.
Memes are often used in the high school classroom as a way to teach content humorously. This specific meme could be used as an example to prompt students to create their own “Love is” meme illustrating themes or concepts in literature. Having students create memes is a fairly common lesson in the high school classroom, but it is often difficult to find appropriate mentor texts online. This specific meme would facilitate clever and thoughtful projects to help students process and/or review classroom literature.
This meme’s take on “Love is . . . #RomanticSafetyTips” is applicable to any book students are reading in the classroom and would facilitate creativity and thoughtful discussion as students work to create their own memes based on literature. The meme’s simple design with hands held in the shape of a heart and the sunset plays on the inspirational poster design often displayed in offices and classrooms. Lessons about media literacy and visual design are also appropriate.
This meme by Joseph Gabel is one from a collection of 172 available at the Library of Congress, created by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to promote safe choices. This specific meme is about space heater safety. A meme is “an idea, behavior, or style that spreads by means of imitation from person to person within a culture and often carries symbolic meaning representing a particular phenomenon or theme” (Merriam-Webster Dictionary, 2018). Coined by British evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins (1976), the word “meme” has now evolved to mean a concept that spreads rapidly via the internet. In 2013, Dawkins characterized an internet meme as one deliberately altered by human creativity, rather than Darwinian selection.
- What aspects of pop culture does this meme “meme”?
- What makes this meme particularly effective?
- How might the elements of this meme be applied to a piece of literature currently being read in the classroom?
Common Core State Standards and NCTE Standards
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Common Core State Standards |
NCTE Standards |
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RI.9-12.1:Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
RI.6-12.6:Determine an author’s purpose in a text and explain how it is conveyed.
W.9-10.9: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.
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NCTE.6: Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and non-print texts.
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- When reading literature, students can be asked to create their own “Love is . . . #RomanticSafetyTips” memes based on character choices and actions in the text. Example: Love is . . . spending your entire life and fortune seeking revenge on your former girlfriend and her family and then being buried next to her when you both finally die (Wuthering Heights).
- In a media literacy unit, students could start with an analysis of this meme, its layout and graphic design, as well as the common elements used (hands in the shape of a heart, sunset) in its messaging. Students can then broaden their analysis to inspirational posters and investigate the effectiveness of language and design.
- Some families may take a very traditional view of love and feel that the use of this specific meme mocks love and/or marriage.
- Use of this meme may trigger a trauma response to those who have been adversely affected by fire.
- The 170+ memes in the collection are available here for parents who want other options.
- Political cartoons, although a different genre of art with a different purpose, could also be used to meet some of the listed standards: Political Cartoons and Public Debates | Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress
- Other suggestions for specific teaching strategies with memes at the Library of Congress: Informational Text: Know Your Meme | Teaching with the Library
- An article in Rolling Stone that explains the meme series at the Library of Congress: How a Government Agency's Offbeat Twitter Memes Landed in the Library of Congress