Memetic Production in Quarantine
In the wake of the COVID-19 fueled speculation, I am adding my contribution to the pool of think pieces.
I have a theory, and it relies on a number of semi-related suppositions. While many claim we are entering a baby boom, I think there is another side-effect of social-distancing that has yet to be discussed.
We are entering creative boom.
This is why I think so:
First, when encouraged to stay inside, humans generally have more sex, spiking birth rates during these stints of lock-down.
Second, young people are having less sex. While influenced by complicated variables, this is prevalent in hyper-industrialized nations and likely has to do with the increasing digitization of our interactions.
Third, the service, retail, and hospitality industries are being throttled. Many individuals will lose their jobs. This, in combination with schooling moving to online mediums, will leave many with excess time on their hands.
Fourth, social-distancing will inhibit most contemporary forms of seeking sexual partners, leaving single and isolated individuals with more free time and minimal access to physical intimacy.
Fifth, while the birth rates will increase slightly, I believe there will be a larger population of sexually frustrated individuals than any previous quarantine, increasing the amount of angst and disposable energy available to this populace.
Sixth, we live in a period where the creation and consumption of content is easier than ever. The current paradigm of media is characterized by user-generated content and curated feeds. With YouTuber being the most desirable profession among young people and apps like TikTok simplifying the creation process to a ten-minute ordeal, there is more potential for creative output than ever before.
In totality, this list of suppositions leads me to the following conclusion. We are entering a creative boom. Procreation will be superseded by content creation, and I think we are going to see some fantastic art.
While the tangible economics of the situation look dire, they are incredibly promising for particular industries, specifically those pertaining to memetic production.
I use the term ‘memetic production’ as a sort of catch-all referencing the production of units of culture (memes). A meme is a rather intentionally vague descriptor of anything from drawings to melodies.
What will start as Corona lock-down Twitch streams and memes about online classes, will become anyone with creative aspirations breaking out the old box of Crayolas. Expect the number of SoundCloud mixtapes and podcasts your friends try to get you to listen to increase exponentially.
The economics of the situation suggest this: the amount of workers in the industry has increased radically overnight and the production will follow suit. The available watch time must be incurring a substantial increase, and I can imagine OTT media companies have no issue with this. Invoking a post-Freudian mode of rationalization, the id is in flux, so we watch Netflix and spend V-bucks.
The reality of the quarantines has not fully set in. In the US, it has only been a week or so for most, and the stir-crazy is approaching on the horizon. Beyond this, many people will need economic answers. While it does not provide the most consistent sources of income, I think people will look to the internet for solutions.
On a more optimistic note, I expect to see some creative masterpieces emerge from the next two months, along with a swath of new content creators forced to make their dreams work in the wake of the pandemic. I’ll be here to help document some of it.
