Items

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  2020-03-25

  The Battle of Costco

  HIST30060 - submitted as part of a history assignment. Again, like many other memes I encountered, this one comments on how the events of this year will be studied, but more importantly how they will be remembered (as emphasised by the almost commemorative nature of the statues). Humorously depicting parents and two children racing with an overflowing trolley full of food toward the check-outs as though it were a battle scene, this meme seeks to ridicule the absurdity of purchasing and hoarding mountains of food during the lock-down period. It suggests that violence in the isles and the toilet paper crisis that saw people literally fighting each other in order to obtain toilet paper will not be looked upon favourably by future historians or students. The way that the figures are carved in stone and the title of ‘The Battle of Costco (2020 A.D.)’ positions the audience to view the image in reference to other major historical conflicts and to find this one, humorously, falling short.
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  2020-11-10

  Repetition of Plagues

  HIST30060 - submitted as part of a history assessment. Many of the memes, like this one, comment on the cyclical nature of history and the inescapability of the repetition of disasters. By drawing attention to other plagues of the past - all of which occurred during the 20s of their respective centuries - the image preempts the current ‘plague’ or pandemic. The accompanying image taken from the 2014 film ‘Big Hero 6’ and the comment ‘I have some concerns’ (an understatement to say the least) add an amusing note to the alarming message. Much of the humour found in these memes and images contained words ‘read’ in a deadpan or resigned tone - or otherwise the voice of one who is no longer surprised by the current turn of events. Again, there is a resounding feeling that this year has been a strain as one disaster after another occurs.
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  2020-05-31

  The history book of 2020

  HIST30060 - submitted as part of an assessment for a history subject. A significant number of the memes I found commented on the incredible number of ‘disasters’ or disruptions that have had a global impact this year (suggesting that this number is far more than anything to occur in the last decade). The disasters referenced in these memes concern a range of instances including the Australian Bushfires, the “threat of World War III” (with the assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani by drone strike), the Covid-19 pandemic, the American Murder Hornets, the explosion in Beirut and the American bushfires. The ‘disasters’ or global events that feature in the memes span almost every continent and every sphere from environmental (e.g. the bushfires), the social (e.g. the American race riots), the economic, the political (e.g. the explosion in Beirut and subsequent investigation into corruption) and health (e.g. the pandemic). This particular meme suggests that the study of this year will be an arduous task for history students of the future.
• 
  2020-08-07

  Everyone Needs a Mask!

  My mum sent me this very adorable photo of my dog wearing a face mask to gently remind me to wear a mask while in public to keep me safe from COVID-19. In Victoria, masks have been mandated in all public areas since July, regardless of social distancing. My mum sent this photo to some of our friends and family too, to cheer them up during the difficult times Victoria was going through at the time with a strong rise in cases. She had also reminded me, like with how our dog Snowy was wearing it in the photo, to make to cover both the mouth and the nose for the mask to function properly. Snowy did not much like wearing the mask, but he certainly looked extremely cute in it! Although at the time when my mum sent me this picture she had meant it as a joke, unfortunately with the new strain of the COVID mutation rumouring to originate from minks in Denmark, the possibility of dogs or cats contracting COVID-19 perhaps isn't so far-fetched. Remember to wear a mask and stay safe!
• 
  2020-04-01

  Iso memes - HIST30060

  This is a TikTok video created and uploaded by user @faunhub. TikTok seemed to become massively popular over lockdown, globally, with people using it make light of what was a very strange situation for everyone, as well as share useful tips and 'hacks' as such related to the pandemic. This particular video encapsulates how bizarre TikToks can get; user @faunhub is dancing tp a speech by Scott Morrison announcing the closure of recreational facilities, placed over a backing track, and making light of his mispronunciation of the word 'barre'. For me, this video and others like it helped to soften the blow of the multiple announcements of restrictions varying in severity and showed how comedy as a coping mechanism was applied in the context of this pandemic.
• 
  2020-04-17

  (HIST30060) Quarantine Beauty

  (HIST30060) With lockdown lasting for many weeks and hairdressers and beauty salons being closed (even for a while as restrictions were eased), people's well-kept and manicured looks went out the window, being replaced with long, untamed hair and eyebrows and tracksuits. We went from looking like Princess Mia to ordinary, bushy-haired Mia as in the image. Many people resorted to giving themselves and family haircuts at home (I cut my hair twice and fringe multiple times throughout lockdown), which had varying results and became an essential covid experince on social media.
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  2020-03-23

  (HIST30060) 2020 in a nutshell courtesy of The Office

  (HIST30060) This video was posted about the time in March when most of the world started going into lockdown and Covid-19 cases were increasingly rapidly everyday, particularly in Europe at that time. At uni, we'd just started online classes as Victoria went into lockdown. The video is great at demonstrating the chaos that existed as the situation became a global pandemic, when nobody knew what was going to happen the next day or really how to deal with what was occurring.
• 
  2020-09-28

  Carrot in a box

  During Lockdown in the search for routine and some sort of normality, usually my weekdays finish with ABC News at 7pm followed by 8 out of 10 Cats does Countdown at 7:30. Being a news snob I have always watched ABC, but recently 8 out of 10 Cats has become a new daily routine that provides regular humour relief from a bleak day inside. Hosted by Jimmy Carr and filled with stupidity as well as 'play-at-home' Countdown gameshow rounds, I have really fallen in love with it. The show is reliable, positive and immature, three things that are hard to come by at the moment. Further to that a pipe dream of mine is to one day live in the UK, and with borders closing until the end of 2021 that feels like a very long pipe, but getting to watch it even now makes me feel like maybe I'll watch it with a cup of tea in London somewhere. This particular clip was one of the funnier things I've ever seen on TV, let alone on this show, and made a mediocre night watching TV a conversational piece about a carrot in a box.
• 
  2020-07

  Jewish Melbourne - my Facebook profile picture for the lockdown

  I wanted to convery my feeling when the Victorian government told us we are going back to lockdown again. I made this from my youngest daughter's toys, including a mock mini toilet paper distributed as a promotion by supermarket chain Coles.
• 
  2020-06-29

  Bubba Helen reflects on how to cope with the Cholera virus while NOT participating in her Israeli dancing passion (Jewish Melbourne)

  The Israeli Folk dancing community in Melbourne specifically, is bereft at not being able to participate in weekly dance classes since the outbreak of the cholera pandemic
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  2020-05-27

  Cat Playing in a Box

  My girlfriend was housesitting for a man who was unfortunately on a cruiseship when coronavirus hit, and he had to be quarantined on Rottnest island. This box was ironically holding toilet paper, but we repurposed it to be a cat café and wrote that he was only serving us takeaway due to COVID-19 restrictions.
• 
  05/12/2020

  State ABC's fight it out on Facebook

  HUM402 Last week ABC Darwin asked on Facebook: "How do you feel about a travel bubble for the NT, Western Australia and South Australia?" Unexpectedly, the ABC pages for the various Australian states responded and the comments erupted into a hilarious "fight" between them all.
• 
  2020-04-17

  2020 Disaster Prediction Meme

  The meme was created and posted on a Facebook group during April, and was part of a trend of memes predicting what terrible event will happen in the next month for 2020. The meme is comprised of two images taken from the show Avatar the Last Airbender, and contains a quote which has been changed to fit the memes theme. It shows the community online dealing with the pandemic through memes, but also highlights how tired people becoming because continued disasters throughout 2020. HUM402
• 
  2020-05-22

  "My Plans vs. 2020" Meme

  A meme I created and posted on a Facebook group, on the topic of the year 2020. Comprised of two images taken from the opening sequence of "Shaun the Sheep", demonstrating how my plans for the year have been ruined by 2020. It summarises my feelings that all the events of the year has ruined all the plans I had, and that it has not been a great year.
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  2020-03-29

  Pandemic Monopoly

  HUM402 The image depicts the creation of Pandemic Monopoly by a Hobart resident. The homemade board game uses toilet paper as currency, referring to the toilet paper shortage seen across Tasmanian supermarkets. The board game presents players with the opportunity to 'own' key Hobart locations. However, instead of mortgage, houses and hotels, the game allows players to buy hospitals and clinics to place on the properties. Centrelink, the Australian governments social security service, features heavily on the board game, indicating the rise in unemployment due to the pandemic. Whilst being used for comical purposes, the game also critiques the Tasmanian governments early handling of Covid-19 crisis via a chance card, which states "You have a fever, dry cough and Pneumonia to boot but despite having all of the symptoms, you haven't knowingly come into contact with a known carried so they won't test you for Covid-19. The Royal Hobart Hospital sends you home. Get out of iso [isolation] free." This refers to the Tasmanian government in early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic refusing to test individuals who had not been in contact with a known case, or had not left the country.
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  2020-04-06

  Tasmanian premier clears Easter Bunny to enter the state

  HUM402 A light-hearted gesture to combat all of the negative news and loss of a traditional Easter holiday for many. Even though travel was prohibited, Easter egg hunts were still something to be looked forward to.
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  2020-04-30

  Hobart bin night

  Musical putting out of rubbish
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  2020-04-21

  First Dog on the Moon Cartoon

  Cartoon inthe Guardian
• 
  2020-04-08

  Which quarantine bird are you

  If gun shops are an essential service in the US, then cartoonists should be an essential service for us.
• 
  2020-03-27

  Meme: who's really behind this!

  Meme: 2 panels from Scooby doo showing character Fred revealing, in the manner of the usual episodic conclusion, that COVID-19 is a conspiracy from the online streaming service Zoom. Zoom, is widely used in an educational setting to stream classes and meetings online, particularly popular as people are made to self-isolate at home.
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  2020-03-26

  Wake up sheeple!

  This meme is a parody of all of the conspiracy theories that have been swirling around the internet.
• 
  2020-03-09

  The Ballad of the Dunny Roll

  The video satirises the 'Australian spirit' and the panic buying of toilet paper which is still - 23 March - a feature of the response to the Pandemic in Australia
• 
  22/03/20

  Facebook post/meme

  Meme, comedic.
• 
  2020-03-21

  Facebook advertisement for satirical TV show Shaun Micallef’s Mad As Hell on the ABC.

  A photo of Francis Greenslade’s character Liam O’Malley, Chief Deputy Medical Officer Intern with the text reading “The important thing with panicking is we don’t want to rush into it. We want all Australians to wait until we can declare a state of national panic and we can have an ordered, timely descent into chaos.” This resource shows the comedic response to panic in the broader community.