Out of all the memorable moments that arose from the 2013 Oscars, the most noteworthy has to be Jennifer Lawrence’s embarrassing trip. On the way to accept her award for Best Actress, Silver Linings Playbook, Lawrence tripped on the layers of fabric making her dress. Addressing the faux paus head on, Lawrence managed to pull herself together shortly after. Although the actress was able to move past the incident, the media isn’t so kind in doing the same. While numerous articles poked fun at the moment, I’m not one to focus on the negative. Instead, Lawrence’s fall takes an optimistic spin when you consider the impact it has in the social media world. Becoming more than just a trending topic on Twitter, her trip has spun itself into the popular world of memes. No Richard Dawkins not your evolutionary meme from 1976, but the internet memes found…today.
Chances are there’s someone with furrowed eyebrows wondering what a meme is. You can relax your eyebrows because here’s your answer. Internet meme’s are a concept in which social or cultural topics gain popularity because of their word of mouth broadcast over the net. The bigger the topic, the more popular and prevalent it becomes. Folks in public relations and marketing have used memes as a form of viral marketing for their products, services, or upgrades. Because of the way they are shared, memes become a smart way to get attention and interaction from consumers.
For Lawrence, her trip gained some laughs but has spun itself into some pretty laughable and surprisingly positive memes (see below). Since her fall, Lawrence has accrued thousands of hashtag references on Instagram and mentions on twitter. Getting everything from the sympathy to the badass card, Lawrence isn’t doing so bad. Making reference to movies that jump started her career like The Hunger Games, her memes may make her more likeable and dare I say it popular than she already was. This means there will be more Lawrence hashtags popping up on Instagram, more memes added on Google Images, and a few more fans of the starlet along the way. Taking all of that into consideration, you know you’re doing something right when what seems to be your most embarrassing moment is turned into a well-loved meme.
With that said, you go Lawrence! Just don’t trip this time.
