Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id LAA17793 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Mon, 14 Jan 2002 11:49:33 GMT Message-ID: <2D1C159B783DD211808A006008062D3102A6D1DA@inchna.stir.ac.uk> From: Vincent Campbell <v.p.campbell@stir.ac.uk> To: "'memetics@mmu.ac.uk'" <memetics@mmu.ac.uk> Subject: RE: playing at suicide Date: Mon, 14 Jan 2002 11:16:22 -0000 X-Mailer: Internet Mail Service (5.5.2650.21) Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" X-Filter-Info: UoS MailScan 0.1 [D 1] Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
Hi Grant,
I think your use of the term meme as a tool is too narrow, you're ognoring
all those arbitary behaviours and trends that many would argue are memes
that seem to defy any obvious sense of utility (pick your fashion craze)
outside of some kind of cop out "social" utility which is a bit like the
archaeologists' cop out of "ritual" for anything they can't make easy sense
of. Dawkins, and others subseuqently (see Blackmore's 'The Meme Machine'
for instance) look to memes to explain the more incomprehensible aspects of
culture.
Vincent
<In the beginning, no. But the child soon learns whether it gets
him what he
> wants or not. Then the tears can be turned on or off like a spigot or a
> light switch to manipulate parents and siblings. That's when it becomes a
>
> meme. Some children refuse to cry when hit. That, too, is a meme. They
> discovered that in their particular circumstances they get better results
> from that behavior. My brother was one of those who refused to cry. He
> just sat around glowering and nursing his anger. His meme was to not give
>
> you the satisfaction of knowing he was hurt. He was only three or four at
>
> the time when I realized what he was doing.>
>
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