Memetic Engineering: Creating Rituals that Spread Organically through Memes

Introduction

Memes are much more than viral images or videos—they are cultural carriers, spreading ideas, behaviours, and values. As Richard Dawkins first introduced the concept of memes in his book The Selfish Gene, they are units of cultural evolution that replicate, mutate, and spread across communities. In the digital age, memes have become a vital force, driving cultural shifts and societal change.

One of the most fascinating aspects of memes is their ability to grow, adapt, and shape behaviours across diverse communities. Memetic engineering—the intentional crafting of memes designed to spread and evolve—has become a tool for creating shared rituals and behaviours that transcend individual contexts. But how can we build memes and rituals that spread organically while maintaining a recognisable core identity?

This article explores how the concept of family resemblance can be used to design memetic rituals—rituals that maintain a flexible core, allowing for variation while remaining true to the original idea. By leveraging family resemblance, we can create memes that evolve naturally, with different expressions in different cultures and communities but that still share a common thread.

The Science of Memetics: From Richard Dawkins to the Digital Age

The idea of memes began as a cultural analogy to genes. Dawkins defined memes as units of cultural transmission that replicate and evolve in a manner similar to genetic evolution. Just as genes pass on traits, memes pass on ideas, practices, and behaviours. They are copied and spread through human interaction and imitation.

However, unlike biological genes, memes can mutate and change form rapidly, especially in the digital era. The internet has allowed memes to proliferate at a pace never seen before, as ideas can now spread to millions of people with a single click. This is where family resemblance becomes important: as memes evolve, they don’t have to be identical copies of the original. They can take on new forms, evolve with the times, and adapt to different audiences, while still sharing some common characteristics with the original.

Example of Family Resemblance in Memes: Take the #MeToo movement. It began as a simple hashtag but evolved into a complex global conversation around sexual harassment. The core message of solidarity and empowerment remained the same, but its expression varied across different cultures, industries, and regions. Different memes emerged to support this movement, but they all carried the same core idea of raising awareness and building solidarity.

Memetic Engineering: Designing for Spread

When designing memes that are meant to become rituals, we need to think of them in terms of family resemblance. This concept, introduced by philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein, suggests that things do not need a single defining characteristic to be classified as part of a family. Instead, they share overlapping similarities. In the same way, a meme designed to become a ritual doesn’t need to be rigidly defined. It needs to allow for flexibility, with elements that can evolve over time while still maintaining some recognisable traits.

Creating Memes with Family Resemblance:

• Core Message: The meme must have a central idea that is recognisable and adaptable. For example, a meme based on mindfulness in the workplace may start with simple steps like "take 5 minutes for yourself" but could evolve to include different practices such as journaling or team mindfulness sessions, depending on how different communities adopt it.
• Emotional Engagement: Memes that resonate emotionally—whether through humour, shared experience, or aspiration—are more likely to become rituals. The emotional core of a meme must remain consistent, even as the way people engage with it changes. This is a prime example of family resemblance: the underlying emotion may be the same, but the expression can differ.
• Variety of Expressions: Memes are most powerful when they can be varied while keeping the core idea intact. Think of how a popular fitness challenge might start with a simple goal (e.g., a 30-day squat challenge) but morph into a series of related challenges (e.g., push-ups, running, yoga) that all carry the same underlying value of self-improvement.

The Anatomy of a Memetic Ritual with Family Resemblance

Rituals are repetitive behaviours that form part of a larger cultural or social system. Memetic rituals are those behaviours or practices that are shared and repeated by people, becoming ingrained in their routines. When a meme evolves into a ritual, it taps into human needs for structure, tradition, and shared experience.

A memetic ritual based on family resemblance works because its core idea is flexible enough to be modified while maintaining a common thread. Here’s how:

• Relatability: Like family members who share characteristics but also have individual distinctions, successful memes have traits that resonate across a broad audience. The core message can be applied in different ways—whether through personal stories, challenges, or actions—that retain a shared essence.
• Cultural Anchoring: Memetic rituals need to be anchored in the cultural or emotional values that unite people. Whether it’s a belief in personal growth, solidarity, or a sense of community, these shared values create a foundation on which a meme can grow, adapt, and take on new forms.
• Flexibility: Just as family members can share physical traits but express them in unique ways, a memetic ritual should be flexible enough to be expressed differently in various contexts. This flexibility allows the ritual to spread naturally and be customised by different groups while maintaining its core identity.

Building Memetic Rituals that Stick (with Family Resemblance)

To design memetic rituals that spread organically, think of them like a family tree. The core idea remains constant, but it branches out and adapts as it spreads. Here’s how to create memes that evolve through family resemblance:

• Identify the Core Idea: Define the ritual’s core behavior or belief, but allow room for flexibility. The central idea should be something that can resonate with people across different communities.
• Encourage Variation: Allow for multiple expressions of the meme. Whether through remixing or adaptation, encourage variations that feel personal but are still tied to the original meme.
• Leverage Communities: Memes spread best when communities adopt them, remix them, and keep them alive. Whether through online forums, social media, or workplace cultures, encourage people to make the meme their own while staying connected to the original ritual.
• Iterate and Adapt: Memes evolve. As they spread, monitor how they are being adopted and allow for natural variation. A meme designed with family resemblance will continue to grow and evolve in different directions while maintaining its essence.

Example of Memetic Evolution: The Harlem Shake is a classic case of memetic evolution. It began as a specific dance but evolved into countless versions, from office workers to athletes to random street groups. The original core—dancing to an electronic beat—was maintained, but each iteration added new cultural and humorous elements, allowing it to spread across the world.

Case Studies of Memetic Rituals with Family Resemblance

Successful memes and rituals that spread through family resemblance have taken various forms across cultures:

• Cultural Movements: The #BlackLivesMatter movement began as a hashtag but grew into a global conversation, evolving into different forms of activism while retaining the same core message of racial justice and equality.
• Fitness Challenges: The Ice Bucket Challenge began as a simple charity fundraiser but became a viral meme, with people adapting it in creative ways (e.g., adding humour, doing the challenge in unusual places) while maintaining its core message of raising awareness for ALS.
• Workplace Rituals: Corporate cultures have also embraced memetic rituals. For example, a team-building activity might start as a single event (e.g., “team lunch”) but evolve into a regular practice (e.g., weekly check-ins, morning meditations) that retains its core goal of fostering connection and collaboration.

The Ethics of Memetic Engineering

While memetic engineering holds great potential for cultural change, it comes with ethical considerations. Like family traits, memes can be twisted or misused, and memetic rituals can be commercialised or manipulated for profit. It's important to maintain the integrity of the core message, ensuring that the ritual remains authentic and beneficial.

For example, memes related to social causes can be co-opted for marketing purposes or used to spread misinformation. The challenge is ensuring that the original intent of the meme is preserved as it evolves.

Ethical Considerations:

• Ensure transparency and authenticity in memetic messaging.
• Avoid exploiting vulnerable groups or trivialising important issues.
• Consider the implications of a meme’s evolution, especially as it gains traction in different communities.

The Future of Memetic Rituals

As technology evolves, so too will the ways in which memetic rituals are created and spread. The advent of AI and digital platforms will allow for new forms of memetic engineering, potentially creating global rituals that still retain family resemblance across different cultures and contexts. Memes and rituals will continue to adapt, evolve, and grow, becoming more personalised while still connected to their original essence.

Technological Influence: With tools like AI-driven content creation, memes can be tested and iterated faster than ever. Digital platforms like social media provide real-time feedback, allowing for rapid adjustments to the memes as they evolve. This could pave the way for even more sophisticated memetic rituals—tailored to the personal preferences and cultural contexts of the global audience.

Conclusion

Memetic engineering through family resemblance is a powerful approach for creating rituals that spread organically. By crafting memes with flexible, recognisable cores and encouraging variation, we can design rituals that resonate across cultures, communities, and individuals. As memes evolve, they maintain a connection to their original purpose, growing into powerful cultural forces that shape behaviours and create shared experiences.