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A Rhetoric of Zaniness: the Case of Pepe the Frog Wayne State University Wayne State University Dissertations January 2019 A Rhetoric Of Zaniness: The Case Of Pepe The Frog Sean Milligan Wayne State University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/oa_dissertations Part of the Rhetoric Commons Recommended Citation Milligan, Sean, "A Rhetoric Of Zaniness: The Case Of Pepe The Frog" (2019). Wayne State University Dissertations. 2365. https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/oa_dissertations/2365 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@WayneState. It has been accepted for inclusion in Wayne State University Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@WayneState. A RHETORIC OF ZANINESS: THE CASE OF PEPE THE FROG by SEAN MILLIGAN DISSERTATION Submitted to the Graduate School of Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY 2019 MAJOR: English Approved By: _____________________________________ Advisor Date _____________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ DEDICATION For Ewan, Finn, and Gizmo. And for Allison most of all. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am incredibly grateful to the Wayne State University Department of English and to my committee, in particular. Thank you to my advisor, Richard Marback, for being open to new ideas and knowing which directions to push me. Thank you to Jeff Pruchnic who has offered crucial advice throughout my time at Wayne (also, thanks for the memes). Thank you to Jonathan Flatley for helping me to think through the directions my research needs to go. Thank you to Kelly Young who has provided both thorough feedback and encouragement throughout this process. I was privileged to take courses with a number of other faculty members who helped shape my thoughts about the topics and concepts addressed in this project. In particular, thank you to Donnie Johnson Sackey, John Pat Leary, Scott Richmond, and Steven Shaviro. Thank you to Caroline Maun who, as both Director of Graduation Studies and Department Chair, has helped me to navigate the department and institution as a whole. I would not have completed this project without the generous financial support of the Wayne State University Department of English and Graduate School. Through the department, I received a Graduate Teaching Assistantship and DeRoy Doctoral Fellowship. Through the Graduate School I received a Graduate Professional Fellowship and Summer Dissertation Award. I benefited from working at an institution with a graduate student union. Thank you to GEOC for representing student workers. Finally, thank you to my family. Thank you to my dad, Tim, and siblings, Joe, Becky, and Kaitlin, for their encouragement over the years. Thank you to my in-laws, Bill and Molly Cox, for their encouragement (and childcare). Thank you to my mother, Nancy, for teaching me to read and write. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Dedication ....................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................... iii List of Figures ................................................................................................................................ vi Chapter 1: “It’s…Pepe. He’s become kind of a symbol…” ............................................................1 Memes and Memetics ..........................................................................................................6 Iconic Images and Iconographic Tracking ........................................................................10 Zaniness ............................................................................................................................15 Chapter Descriptions .........................................................................................................20 Chapter 2: The Zaniness of Pepe the Frog ....................................................................................23 Boy’s Club and Zaniness ..................................................................................................24 Memes and 4chan .............................................................................................................27 Trolling and Lulz ..............................................................................................................29 Beta Males, Incels, and Pepe ............................................................................................32 “Feels Good Man” ............................................................................................................34 Feels Bad Man/Sad Frog ...................................................................................................37 Smug Frog .........................................................................................................................38 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................42 Chapter 3: The Alt-Right, Trolling, and the Cult of KEK ............................................................ 45 The Alt-Right ....................................................................................................................47 Gamergate and the Origins of the Alt-Right .....................................................................51 The Cult of Kek and #FreeKekistan .................................................................................55 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................59 iv Chapter 4: Pepe and The Deplorables ...........................................................................................62 Trump and Post-Truth Political Rhetoric ..........................................................................65 Trump and the Politics of Resentment ..............................................................................70 Trump’s Zany Style ..........................................................................................................73 Trump and Twitter ............................................................................................................74 Pepe and Trump ................................................................................................................78 The Deplorables, Political Nostalgia, and Zaniness .........................................................82 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................86 Chapter 5: Pepe’s Rhetorical (After) Life .....................................................................................88 The Adventures of Pepe and Pede, Infowars, and Copyright Lawsuits ............................89 Pepe and the 2019 Hong Kong Protests ............................................................................92 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................97 Works Cited ................................................................................................................................101 Abstract .......................................................................................................................................114 Autobiographical Statement ........................................................................................................115 v LIST OF FIGURES Fig. 1.1. Richard Spencer explaining Pepe lapel pin (before getting punched in the head), ABC News (Australia), 22 Jan. 2017, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFh08JEKDYk ..................1 Figure 1.2. Pepe the Frog, Know Your Meme, 26 Mar. 2015, https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/pepe-the-frog ........................................................................2 Figure 1.3. William Gibson’s tongue in cheek tweet identifying Pepe in avocado packaging, 16 May 2017, https://twitter.com/greatdismal/status/864549084580921345?lang=en .....................11 Fig. 2.1. Matt Furie, Boy’s Club; rpt. on Know Your Meme, 12 Apr. 2009, https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/feels-good-man ...................................................................35 Fig. 2.2. “Feels Good Man,” 25 Jan. 2011, https://knowyourmeme.com/photos/95218-feels- good-man ......................................................................................................................................37 Fig. 2.3. “Feels Bad Man/Sad Frog,” 10 Feb. 2012, https://knowyourmeme.com/photos/248081- feels-bad-man-sad-frog .................................................................................................................38 Fig. 2.4. “Smug Frog,” 9 Nov. 2014, https://knowyourmeme.com/photos/862065-smug-frog ...39 Fig. 2.5. “Smug Nazi Pepe,” 7 Nov. 2014, https://knowyourmeme.com/photos/861025-smug- frog ................................................................................................................................................40 Fig. 2.6. “Katy Perry shares image of Pepe on Twitter to describe experience of jet lag” 8 Nov. 2014, https://twitter.com/katyperry/status/531011411720151041?lang=en .................................41 Fig. 3.1. Jeremie Lederman, from “An Establishment Conservative’s Guide to the Alt-Right,” breitbart.com,
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