The Influence of Memetics for Language Spread

【Abstract】Memetics is an emerging theory to interpret cultural evolution， which is based on Darwins evolution theory. It shows that meme is a unit of cultural information， which can be replicated and transmitted continuously for long. The same as a gene， meme exists through the process of replication and transmission. This paper attempts to explain the reason why language transmitted for generations and provides a new perspective for the explanation of language development and cultural evolution， as well as the further studies on memetics.

【Key words】language meme； memetics； language transmission； memetic genotype； memetic phenotype

Ⅰ. Introduction

Memetics is an evolutionary model of cultural information transfer. It refers to a theory of mental content based on an analogy with Darwinian evolutionary. The concept of memes， the units of information， was first raised by Richard Dawkins by popularization of his book The Selfish Gene in 1976. Dawkins thought that the outstanding theory of Darwinian evolutionary shouldnt be limited in the biological field. It is applicable to linguistics as well. In the domains of linguistics， language is also up against the situation of the positive natural selection. The survival of the fittest in natural selection of words is one of the most important factors for language spread.

Ⅱ. Features of transmission

As the rules of nature， survival of the fittest， not all genes can be replicated successfully as well as memes. Then some memes get more opportunities to be chosen in the meme-pool than others （Richard Dawkins， 2006： 194）. Therefore， a good replicator should possess the following characteristics： copying-fidelity， longevity， selectivity and variability.

2.1 Copying-fidelity. The transmission for memes retain some of the original shapes or forms in a new patterns. For instance， the Meme Expressions， that is 暴走漫畫in China， is intrinsically linked to the theory of memetics. The reason why it was called meme is that it is not simply an expression. It is the outstanding cultural genes survival from the fiercely competition of website transmission. The reason for its survival is for its simple and vivid. It copies the expression of those who are famous in various fields， and mostly importantly it reserves their facial look and selectively exaggerate their expression， so that when we look these meme expressions we can directly know what the each of the expression could transmit for us. For instance， Mr. Forever Love， the meaning of this expression is lonely. Each expression represents a word which could express ones mood vividly.

2.2 Longevity. The reservation of the memes could last for years and merged into a new environment naturally. The “old element” hold a particular culture or plot to expression a new feeling or atmosphere although the memes from long ago are against grain. The reason for longevity of memes could be their strong practicability. For instance， some of the Classical Chinese or Wenyanwen， which were official words in ancient China thousand years ago， were still used by people nowadays. “Looking for Her in the Crowds”（眾里尋他千百度）， originated from the Song Lyrics of Xin Qiji is the jingle of Baidu in order to express the idea that Baidu is the one who you love and seek for a longtime， and finally the one you choose based on your sincerely heart. This sentence could transmit for thousands of years for the reasons that it could apply in the daily life and represent a deeper concept or idea in order to achieve some goals， for instance for business or education objectives etc.

2.3 Selectivity. Why some of the ancient prose could be selected and survival， while others not？ It could be explained by two kinds of memes： dominant genes and vulnerable genes. Dominant genes means those which are widely used by majority or applied by more people. While those which are used by minority and applied by less people are relatively vulnerable. For instance， dialect. The song， Shanghai Bund（上海灘）was very familiar with us. Eg. 浪（龍）奔（班）浪（龍）流（老）萬（滿）里（雷）濤濤（偷偷）江（拱）水（雖）永（未） 不（八）休（咬） Most of us actually dont know what they really mean. And even we cant say a word in Cantonese， we still could sing the song. Because we use comparably similar pronunciations to represent the Cantonese ones. In the case of this， Mandarin is the dominant gene and Cantonese is the vulnerable gene. The numbers of people who use Mandarin is much more than those who use Cantonese. Therefore， the transmission speed and range of the dominant gene is faster than the later. Replacing the Cantonese， Mandarin can be in the memory of the majorities. On the other hand， the Cantonese promote its status and enhance its transmission by use of the effect and influence of Mandarin. Therefore， the selection of memes tends to the dominant genes and those meaningful， effective， and practicable. Relatively speaking， both of them can be transformed mutually.

Ⅲ. Conclusion

Memetics is a newly emerging theory in Chinese academic field， and it has not been given enough attention. Therefore， the materials for this study are limited. Due to the qualitative study of this theory， the choices and the analysis of examples might be subjective in this paper.

As an emerging theory， memetics provide a new perspective to explain the language transmission. However， systematically and deeply theoretical framework are imperative. It is hoped that this paper could provide inspiration and constructive suggestions for those who intend to do the deeper studies about this theory.

作者簡介：郭婧（1988.12-），碩士，研究方向：外國語言學及應用語言學。