The year 2024 in memes, a “joyful identity crisis”

From Normand Marineau to Dunethrough the Olympic Games, the memosphere had its classics in 2024. However, deep within it, it was experiencing a form of “identity crisis”… which turned out to be positive, analyzes Jean-Michel Berthiaume, doctor in semiology. A look back at the memes of the year.

In February, the News in memes page, followed by nearly 55,000 people subscribed to Facebook, published a status which set the tone for the year 2024: I forgot how to make memessaid its creator.

This statement does not surprise Jean-Michel Berthiaume, specialist in popular culture: the blocking of news on Meta platforms (Instagram, Facebook) and its marked distancing from political content make it a less and less welcoming and caring place for people who want to experimentlike meme artists.

The expert highlights the work of Fruiter, a historic meme page in Quebec, which for its part turned to the social network LinkedIn, where we never thought we would see memes. By investing in this temple individual advertising with corporate jokes, Fruiter showed great resourcefulness, notes Jean-Michel Berthiaume.

In this movement, it is normal for some people to question their practiceshe adds.

Normand Marineau, the meme of the year

The memosphere nevertheless quickly found an anchor point in this identity anxiety with the Normand Marineau meme, which Jean-Michel Berthiaume describes as canned viral material.

The meme originates from a video published on TikTok by the Archives of -, in which a team of young hockey players take turns calling out names to a journalist. One of the young players stands out: Normand Marineau. He recounts his extraordinary season, while riding his r…a little too close to the microphone.

It didn’t take much more to charm the canvas. On social networks, Internet users took the extract to make lip synchronization (lipsync) on the players’ names. The trend has even been taken up by Québec solidaire.

This virality has also transcended the web: on the radio, Annie Desrochers, the host of the 15-18 on ICI Première, broadcast the extract on the air, attracting the attention of Normand Marineau himself. He was invited to his microphone for a few minutes, where he did well be careful not to roll your “r” too much.

Normand Marineau, who made a career in psychology and not as a professional hockey player, ultimately made an appearance on the small screen at the Gémeaux Awards Gala in September.

Everyone recognizes this little boy who is instantly endearing.

Normand Marineau a so caught up quickly and hard that, very shortly after, we came back from it and moved on to something elseexplains Jean-Michel Berthiaume. A transition that was made with respect and kindness.

Becoming a meme overnight isn’t always fun. Normand Marineau is the exception that proves the rule.

For example, the closure of Cabaret La Tulipe in Montreal – a century-old cultural institution in the metropolis – due to a complaint from a neighbor caused a stir in September, creating a meme buzz degrading towards the complainant.

The 1001 expressions of Bernard Drainville

The Quebec meme scene has not abandoned its classics. Bernard Drainville has been the most mistrusted personality for several years, neck and neck with François Legaultestimates the specialist in popular culture.

He has such an expressive face that it’s super ‘meme’. We can find all the possible screenshots for all the reactions.

A page of memes had fun, for example, by using the image of Bernard Drainville who seems to squint while looking, unprotected, at the sun. This is a nod to schools and daycares that were closed on April 8, the day of the total solar eclipse, to prevent eye injuries, a decision that shocked many parents and families. Internet users.

We could see the Minister of Education narrowing his eyes at news relating to the lack of staff in schools at the start of the school year, for example.

The return of Dune

The second part of the film Dune, by Quebec director Denis Villeneuve, has also seen its share of memes, starting with the character of Stilgar, played by Javier Bardem.

This one throws loud and clear Oral al-Gaib for every gesture – even the smallest – that Paul Atreides, played by Timothée Chalamet, makes. In the universe of DuneLisan al-Gaib is the name given to the prophet by the people of the Fremen.

It’s a funny way to declare not a false prophet, but a broken prophet.mentions Jean-Michel Berthiaume. Online, people have used the image to illustrate everyday feats, for example this colleague capable of converting a Word file into PDF.

Start of the Twitter widget. Skip the widget?End of Twitter widget. Return to start of widget?

The Olympic Games

Who says Olympic year says Olympic memes. And the sports competitions in Paris were particularly inspiring for Internet users.

The Turkish shooter, with salt-and-pepper hair, arrived at his shooting post with minimal equipment, that is to say his weapon, glasses and earplugs. Hand in his pocket, he aimed at the target, shot and won the silver medal.

Open in full screen mode

His image has been compared many times to that of other, much more equipped athletes.

There is this contrast between the athlete from the Republic of Korea and all his sophisticated technological equipment, and the one from Turkey, a gentleman who seems to be in total indifference.

But it’s Rachael Gunn (aka Raygun or b-girl Raygun), Australian competitor in the new Olympic discipline of breakingwho wins the prize for the most mistrusted athletes this year.

Open in full screen mode

His crazy movements, sometimes reminiscent of a kangaroo, sometimes a tantrum of a child on the ground, went viral instantly.

On the one hand, we have the winner in the discipline, a Canadian activist who did everything for breaking to be in the Olympic Games, and on the other, the Australian doctoral student who registered […] and humbled herself with such candor.

Months after the event, new memes featuring her continue to proliferate.

All eyes on Rafah

Open in full screen mode

The image in which we see a refugee camp with shelters perfectly aligned to form the words All eyes on Rafah (all eyes on Rafah) has been reposted tens of millions of times on Instagram, making it one of the first viral memes generated by artificial intelligence (AI).

It’s not necessarily something that represents realism, but it represents the feeling of realism: the emotion connected to the image All eyes on Rafah was real.

According to the specialist, the virality of the image can be explained by people’s desire to raise awareness among others, to emphasize that they have a recognition of disaster, catastrophe, loss and mourning linked to the tragedy that occurred in Rafah, where 45 people lost their lives in Israeli bombings.

The role of the French language in the quest for identity

The local memosphere may have been anxious about its identity at the start of the year, but it managed to assert itself and find a balance. And it is in this balance that we saw the best memes of 2024analyzes Jean-Michel Berthiaume.

This quest for identity was manifested through the French language and Quebec culture, through, among other things, challenges between meme artists. The pages Memes and words, Memes nonos inoffensives, News in memes as well as McGilles played who will make the best meme with an advertisement for English in Quebecmentions the specialist.

They kept the slogan Another good reason to learn English advertising and attached images of key personalities. Among these, we include the comedian Gad Elmaleh, for whom learning English would be useful in order to steal jokes from Jerry Seinfeld and Lord Durham, whose report described the inhabitants of Lower Canada as a people without history or culture.

Open in full screen mode

Another manifestation of identity: a moderator on the Reddit forum EhBuddyHosera popular Canadian page of provocative memes without context, called cacpostage or cacapoteaux (shitposting) in jargon, announced that all memes would now only be published in English, so that they could be understood by everyone.

What followed was a wave of rather unusual pan-Canadian protest, where we saw anglophones coming to the defense of the country’s francophones, Acadia included.

Open in full screen mode

Open in full screen mode

In addition to the French language, Internet users defended indigenous languages, which are also an important part of the country. Among the community’s responses was a rudimentary Anishinabe alphabet.

This is the greatest movement of polycultural support I have seen in my life. I have never witnessed so much solidarity.

This is a quintessential Canadian utopian momentwith a note of uniqueness which ends in style this year of identity anxiety for meme pages, believes the specialist in popular culture.