The internet has recently been flooded with the ‘Little Miss’ meme template. Everyone has been addicted to this trend due to its relatability.
The characters now used for this viral fad originated in the ‘Mr. Men and Little Miss’ animated series. There, they originally had more genetic traits such as being jealous, neat, and helpful which were displayed in their names, such as Little Miss jealous, along with similar simple and innocent appearances.
However, when juulpupp, an Instagram creator, began giving the characters her own spin, the traits associated with the characters became more specific. She would use the image of a character from the show but change the name of the character. One example is one of her earlier posts captioned with “Little Miss Weed Psychosis.”
She later claimed the success and popularity of this and other similar posts was due to “the pairings [that] are so ridiculous and relate to so many people. Any caption can be applied to a Little Miss image, so no one has to feel like the odd one out from this trend.” In which pairing references the contradiction between the character’s appearance and the name.
Later, this trend began surfacing in other platforms such as TikTok and YouTube. The “Little Miss” hashtag on TikTok has even gained 140 million views.
Luckily, unlike certain past trends such as the cinnamon or tide pod challenge, this meme is relatively harmless. Assistant professor at Queens College, Jamie Cohen, even said, “I think it’s neat that people are using it to introduce really specific traits like neuroses, trauma or divergent characteristics — something that I think is good as it helps people hear new vocabulary and unknown characteristics in both funny and serious ways.”
However, this trend is not without its faults. Because of its simplicity, versatility, and popularity, many companies have begun using the trend for advertisement purposes. Cohen said, “I do think the corporate trajectory of this meme takes away from its initial pureness…[i]t has definitely dulled my enthusiasm on the whole trend.” Yet, taking away from the joy of the trend seems to be a small concern. Cohen also mentions how “many companies and organizations that have caused so much harm to humanity try to jump in on the trend.” Emphasizing the issue of having such companies having easy beneficial publicity.
With the fate of all internet fads, irrelevancy, becoming a possibility. Cohen concludes that “[i]t’s a double-edged sword, creating something that can be shaped to fit any identity.” One can only wonder if this trend’s simple origin and greatest asset will be its downfall or lead to continuing relevance.
Article: https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1659267252858x656912773115314600/%E2%80%98Little%20Miss%20%5BBlank%5D%E2%80%99_%20How%20a%20kid-book%20meme%20became%20viral%20comedy%20-%20The%20Washington%20Post.pdf
The characters now used for this viral fad originated in the ‘Mr. Men and Little Miss’ animated series. There, they originally had more genetic traits such as being jealous, neat, and helpful which were displayed in their names, such as Little Miss jealous, along with similar simple and innocent appearances.
However, when juulpupp, an Instagram creator, began giving the characters her own spin, the traits associated with the characters became more specific. She would use the image of a character from the show but change the name of the character. One example is one of her earlier posts captioned with “Little Miss Weed Psychosis.”
She later claimed the success and popularity of this and other similar posts was due to “the pairings [that] are so ridiculous and relate to so many people. Any caption can be applied to a Little Miss image, so no one has to feel like the odd one out from this trend.” In which pairing references the contradiction between the character’s appearance and the name.
Later, this trend began surfacing in other platforms such as TikTok and YouTube. The “Little Miss” hashtag on TikTok has even gained 140 million views.
Luckily, unlike certain past trends such as the cinnamon or tide pod challenge, this meme is relatively harmless. Assistant professor at Queens College, Jamie Cohen, even said, “I think it’s neat that people are using it to introduce really specific traits like neuroses, trauma or divergent characteristics — something that I think is good as it helps people hear new vocabulary and unknown characteristics in both funny and serious ways.”
However, this trend is not without its faults. Because of its simplicity, versatility, and popularity, many companies have begun using the trend for advertisement purposes. Cohen said, “I do think the corporate trajectory of this meme takes away from its initial pureness…[i]t has definitely dulled my enthusiasm on the whole trend.” Yet, taking away from the joy of the trend seems to be a small concern. Cohen also mentions how “many companies and organizations that have caused so much harm to humanity try to jump in on the trend.” Emphasizing the issue of having such companies having easy beneficial publicity.
With the fate of all internet fads, irrelevancy, becoming a possibility. Cohen concludes that “[i]t’s a double-edged sword, creating something that can be shaped to fit any identity.” One can only wonder if this trend’s simple origin and greatest asset will be its downfall or lead to continuing relevance.
Article: https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1659267252858x656912773115314600/%E2%80%98Little%20Miss%20%5BBlank%5D%E2%80%99_%20How%20a%20kid-book%20meme%20became%20viral%20comedy%20-%20The%20Washington%20Post.pdf
