Is he right?

Are memes the proverbs of the future? It really makes me think in ways I couldn't have imagined

I wouldn't compare memes to proverbs, but I would compare proverbs to memes.
Memes don't really function like proverbs do. They're far less conscious. You can't even say that they convey ideas, since they only really function emotionally. I definitely agree with his historical analysis, but I would add that memes are fundamentally more powerful and influential. Also memes aren't really visual. They're far more reliant on language.

>memes aren't really visual

>posts meme that uses language

In real life I make the same expressions of image reactions
What do you think about that?

I think you have autism

...

With the development of ubiquitous visual interfaces and VR we are witnessing the death of Judeo-Christian logocentrism and a return to archaic oral-visual shamanism. Within a few generations illiteracy will be a mark of affluence, as the wealthy will abide in a world of images and communication will be oral-memetic. Spectacle on steroids.

In all seriousness, memes are visual and lingual. It's important to think about how memes are most commonly utilised. Scroll through Facebook and you will see that most memes rely on language (the caption) and narration (the comment). Yes, comments are a part of the meme. A meme isn't a product like a book or a song. Memes are authored collectively and are completely dynamic. They're not images - they're long processes of distribution, narration, discussion and interaction. A meme is an idea that is iterated, referenced and utilised, much like lingual concepts.

Dan?

I would argue even some words are visual and not in the sense that they are visual symbols but more in the sense that we associate words with visual 'stuff'
You think of something and you can think of an image

But I thought about this and can't imagine images for "but" or "why" and so on and so on

Language is an incredibly sophisticated and confusing thing. The way I understand it, language is the highest form of intelligence (sentience, complexity, consciousness) and imagery is a lower form of intelligence. We conjure up images in our minds in order to translate a higher truth into a lower, more easily understood truth.
To go off the deep end a bit - language is the Logos, Christ, God and imagery is the idol, the world, the created. I agree with

bump

This is doomsaying that has been happening for centuries. Memes won't override the need to consume descriptive information effectively and you can't write a news article entirely in memes and gifs no matter how hard BuzzFeed tries. Unless we can download information directly into our brains and comprehend it then literacy will remain prevalent.

>Are memes the proverbs of the future?
No, memes require more effort to interpret.

Reading list on memes let's go!

bump

Here's an idea: what if twitter is generating the future proverbs more so than memes do? Instead memes being proverbs memes will just become part of regular sentences.

The Selfish Pepe -Downkins

>How to Design Pepes - Felleisen, Findler, Flatt, Krishnamurthi
>Ride the meme -Ebola
>The Joy of Memes -Michael Fogus, Chris Houser
>Memes - Edward Bernays

Would be a good start

Man's search for memes

No Longer Shitposter - Osamu Dazai