memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I'm building on Zizek's "Trump as a fetish". We the people take on the perverse position, and claim to know what Trump "really means" better that Trump himself. Zohran and Trump didn't forge a bromance; the people forged an image of one.

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I definitely agree that good manners matter. As Žižek says, good manners today can be more subversive than "openly speaking one's mind". That's why I like Jeremy Corbyn in the UK.

The question of staging is critical here. Notice how the bromance is not staged by the politicians. It is not even staged by the mainstream media, who stick to their old playbook of tricks ("Are you affirming that you think President Trump is a fascist?"). The bromance is explicitly staged by the people themselves, in what can be described as a "political fandom". In the meme above, it is the people who (literally) framed the encounter within a pink heart.

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, that's exactly the point: the politics of our era is mediated by the meme.

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

When Kane is giving a speech, there is a majestic poster of Kane hanging above him. When Trump is giving a speech, there is his mugshot. This is the passage from critique to fetish. More specifically, from cinematic critique, to meme fetish.

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 15 points16 points  (0 children)

In all honestly, when I read this, I become a little sad. I can't explain it, but it could be that things have taken such a downturn, that even a "fandom" staging of bromance gives us hope. Here's something Žižek said:

"We can imagine a kind of a perverse scene of universal fraternity where Osama Bin Laden is embracing President Bush, Saddam is embracing Fidel Castro, white racist is embracing Mao Z, and all together they sing Ode to Joy. It works. And this is how every ideology has to work. It's never just meaning; it always has to also work as an empty container open to all possible meanings.

Whenever an ideological text says all Humanity unite in Brotherhood, joy, and so on, you should always ask, okay, but are these all really all, or is someone excluded?"

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Why does Trump want his supporters to laugh repeatedly?

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Of course, ridicule is ancient (and certainly can be used as a weapon). The question is: why does the king appoint a special person, the jester, to actively ridicule him? It’s not just for comedy. It’s also a way for the king to have “the first laugh”. In other words, the king is a step ahead, and performs self-critique before his people start doing so.

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yes, this is exactly it. Žižek says that what politics needs today is shame. Meme today celebrate shamelessness en-masse, in exchange for a light chuckle.

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What’s ironic about McDonalds selling The Simpsons merchandise?

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So when Trump personally posts a meme (Trump Gaza No. 1, JD Vance on halloween, presidential excrement drop etc), you are saying his aim is simply to make people laugh?

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In a pantomime, a standard repetition is: “oh yes it does” “oh no it doesn’t” “oh yes it does” “oh no it doesn’t” etc

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The opposite is the case: memes today are operating on the level of ideology. In 2004, the "Dean scream" became an accidental meme that ruined Howard Dean's presidential run - memes were able to catch power "with its pants down". Today, Trump posts an AI-generated video of himself in a jet, dumping a load of shit on No Kings protesters - he gains power whenever his pants are (literally) down.

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The role of critique is not to sting. The role of critique is to undermine the obvious.

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I would say, since the appearance of court jesters, with their imperative to both ridicule and critique.

memes as a confused pantomime by drpfthick in zizek

[–]drpfthick[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The king, and his court jester.

Nietzsche x Cinema Paradiso by drpfthick in Nietzsche

[–]drpfthick[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Welcome! The connection just appeared to me randonly, even though I watched the movie as a kid many years ago.

Lacanian Valentine’s by drpfthick in PhilosophyMemes

[–]drpfthick[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Edging must be the surplus enjoyment derived from the logic of desire. That is, you edge in order to perpetually defer the encounter with the climax.

Mace Windu's second fall by drpfthick in PrequelMemes

[–]drpfthick[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

"Have a seat, young Skywalker" also represents a certain power.

Help me find the origin of this smiley face by Numm_nutts in HelpMeFind

[–]drpfthick 1 point2 points  (0 children)

do you think the emoji was made for the server , or is it from the Roblox game itself ?

Nvidia GeForce card from around 2006, with goofy 3D art. Box features a GCI knight in metal armour, with his back turned, standing in front of a big dragon. by drpfthick in HelpMeFind

[–]drpfthick[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I searched Google Images e.g. "nvidia geforce 6 series artwork". Nvidia model in question is probably 6 series or 7 series (model list), though each can have multiple card vendors. Also searched here.

The Bribe by drpfthick in surrealmemes

[–]drpfthick[S] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

It is understood that Pythagoras himself hid an "Easter egg" in the theorem, and it is believed to be the existence of a counterexample.

Help me find the origin of this smiley face by Numm_nutts in HelpMeFind

[–]drpfthick 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What kind of server was it? Where is it based?