Strange Creatures Gladwell Analysis

In "Strange Creatures," Susan Blackmore mentions the notion of "Successful Memes" and "Unsuccessful Memes," but does not go in detail to explain what really makes a meme successful or unsuccessful. However, through Malcolm Gladwell 's "Small Change" Why the revolution will not be tweeted," we are able to interpret in detail that what really distinguishes a successful meme from an unsuccessful meme. Gladwell 's essay provides solid evidence of successful memes when he mentions the Greensboro lunch counter encounter and the lost cell phone case. Furthermore, the phenomena of "Strong-ties" and "Weak-ties" help us better understand why memes are successful in being transmitted. Along with that, the timing of carrying out a meme is significant

However, Blackmore tends to go against that idea as she implies "Instead of thinking ideas as our own creations, and as working for us, we have to think of them as autonomous selfish memes, working only to get themselves copied"(Blackmore,37). For a meme to be successfully transmitted, one must generate new ideas constantly. Through Gladwell 's essay, we are clearly able to interpret that we do have the ability to generate ideas. As Gladwell implies, "It was McNeil who brought up the idea of sit-in at Woolworth 's"(Gladwell,137). It shows that we are able to generate ideas on our own. This idea can perhaps be termed a successful meme, as the sit-ins were spread to different states in order to evoke a change. A meme is most likely to be successful if it tackles a real problem, a historical event, which requires self-sacrifice, asking us to be bigger and have the guts to actually take on a challenge. The challenge which the four college students take on is huge, which is taking on the whites by performing the sit-in. They perhaps though the time is right to bring a change as they were frustrated at being left out and being

It is clear through Gladwell 's essay that successful memes are those which have a significant importance in history, and those which address real problems. Blackmore terms meme into two categories: successful memes and unsuccessful memes. The example mentioned in Gladwell 's essay of a successful meme, such as the Greensboro lunch counter encounter, addresses a real problem which is racial discrimination. Unsuccessful memes based on Gladwell 's essay are those which have weak-ties, such as activism through social media. However, as Blackmore describes memes, she says that they are something that are imitated and transmitted to one another, but if unsuccessful memes are not able to be transmitted, how can they even be called memes? Gladwell disregards the use of social media as successful memes, suggesting they do not have strong ties, but really, does one need strong ties to bring a change? Gladwell himself mentions the case in Moldova, in which thousands of protesters were brought together to the streets by the use of social media. Supposedly by "weak-ties." the protesters able to bring a change, and hence dubbed the "Twitter Revolution." So it is seemingly alright to term memes through the use social media as to successful memes. Furthermore, Blackmore seemingly disagrees with the fact that us humans can be creative, whereas Gladwell 's essay contrastingly suggests that we do not lack creativity, indeed our potency is progressing the world further. Gladwell