I TOOK AN ARROW IN THE KNEE By Yodsapon Chirawut (Ton)
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he phrase ‘I took an arrow in the knee’ became very popular on the internet particularly around the end of the year 2011 when it was used intensively on web sites like YouTube and Facebook. The phrase is a good example of what is called ‘internet meme’ or just ‘meme’. What is an Internet meme?
The first and notable one is the ‘arrow in the knee’. The full phrase is ‘I used to be an adventurer like you; then I took an arrow in the knee’ frequently spoken by city guards in the game Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. The meme is used to provide a silly excuse; for example,’ I used to wake up early in the morning and then I took an arrow to the knee’ said a tardy student.
According to Wikipedia, an internet meme is used to describe a concept or idea that spreads via the Internet which might be in the forms of hyperlink, video, picture, website, or just a word or phrase. Internet memes usually come from social interaction or situations people find themselves in (a socially awkward moment). Many are also from video games such as the ‘arrow in the knee’ as mentioned at first.
In another game Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Private J Ramirez, who is one of the playable characters, has been given orders consistently (a total of 56 scripted times, usually by Sgt. Foley – Callofduty.wiki.com) to take amazing, impossible actions against the enemy, and is always successful. This created a new meme called ‘RAMIREZ! DO EVERYTHING!’ used when asking someone to complete super-difficult tasks.
The main purpose of internet memes is fun. When people see a meme, they simply find it amusing in some way and then share it with their friends. With the internet, millions of people can perceive a meme almost instantly.
Similar to the Ramirez phrase, ‘Do a barrel roll!’ from Star Fox 64 is uttered by the protagonist’s pilot companion on an annoyingly regular basis in order to avoid instant death. The amusing application is that whatever difficulty you
Memes from games In this article, we will focus on a few memes whose origins are video games.
Meme ‘RAMIREZ! DO EVERYTHING!’ Source: knowyourmeme.com/memes/ramirez-doeverything
A city guard in the game ‘Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim’ Source: knowyourmeme.com/memes/i-took-an-arrow-in -the-knee
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