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Pepe the Frog

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"Frog meme" redirects here. For the image of a frog riding a unicycle, see Dat Boi.

Pepe
Boy's Club character
First appearance2005 in Boy's Club[1]
Last appearance2017
Created byMatt Furie
In-universe information
SpeciesFrog
GenderMale

Pepe the Frog is a popular Internet meme. The green anthropomorphic frog with a frog-like face and a humanoid body is originally from a comic series by Matt Furie called Boy's Club.[2] It became an Internet meme when its popularity steadily grew across Myspace, Gaia Online and 4chan in 2008. By 2015, it had become one of the most popular memes used on 4chan.

Beginning in 2015, the character's image has been appropriated as a symbol of the controversial alt-right movement. The Anti-Defamation League added Pepe the Frog to their database of hate symbols in 2016, adding that not all Pepe memes are racist.[3] Since then, Pepe's creator has publicly expressed his dismay at Pepe being used as a hate symbol.[4]

The meme's original use has evolved over time and has many variants, including Sad Frog, Smug Frog, Feels Frog, and "You will never..." Frog.[5]

History

Pepe the Frog was created by American artist Matt Furie. Its usage as a meme came from his comic, Boy's Club #1. The progenitor of Boy's Club was a zine that Furie made on Microsoft Paint called Playtime, which included Pepe as a character.[6] He posted his comic in a series of blog posts on Myspace in 2005.[5][7]

In the comic, Pepe is seen urinating with his pants pulled down to his ankles and the catchphrase "feels good man" was his rationale.[8][9] Furie took those posts down when the printed edition was published in 2006.[5]

Pepe was used in blog posts on Myspace and became an in-joke on Gaia Online. In 2008, the page containing Pepe and the catchphrase was scanned and uploaded to 4chan's /b/ board, which was described by Motherboard as his "permanent home".[5] It took off among 4chan users, who adapted Pepe's face and the catchphrase to fit different scenarios and emotions, such as melancholy, anger, and surprise.[2] Color was also added; originally a black and white line drawing, Pepe became green with brown lips, sometimes in a blue shirt.[7][8] "Feels Guy", or "Wojak", originally an unrelated character typically used to express melancholy, was eventually often paired with Pepe in user-made comics or images.[9]

"My Pepe philosophy is simple: 'Feels good man.' It is based on the meaning of the word Pepe: 'To go Pepe.' I find complete joy in physically, emotionally, and spiritually serving Pepe and his friends through comics. Each comic is sacred, and the compassion of my readers transcends any differences, the pain, and fear of 'feeling good.'"

–Matt Furie, 2015 interview with The Daily Dot[2]

Around 2015, as Pepe's usage was increasing, a phenomenon began on 4chan where users would declare certain variants as rare, known as a "rare Pepe". These images, sometimes as physical paintings,[10][11] were put up for sale and auction on eBay and posted in listings on Craigslist.[2][5] 4chan users referred to those who used the meme outside of the website as "normies" (or "normalfags") in response to the meme's increase in usage.[5] That year Pepe was #6 on Daily News and Analysis' list of the most important memes and was the most retweeted meme on Twitter.[12][13]

During the 2016 United States presidential election, the meme was connected to Donald Trump's campaign. In October 2015, Donald Trump retweeted a Pepe representation of himself, associated with a video called "You Can't Stump the Trump (Volume 4)".[3][14] Later in the election, Roger Stone and Donald Trump Jr. posted a parody movie poster of The Expendables on Twitter and Instagram titled "The Deplorables", a play of Hillary Clinton's controversial phrase, basket of deplorables, which included Pepe's face among those of members of the Trump family and other figures popular among the alt-right.[15]

Also during the election, associations of the character with white nationalism and the alt-right were described by various news organizations.[16][17][18] In May 2016, Olivia Nuzzi of The Daily Beast wrote how there was "an actual campaign to reclaim Pepe from normies" and that "turning Pepe into a white nationalist icon" was an explicit goal of some on the alt-right.[19] In September 2016, an article published on Hillary Clinton's campaign website described Pepe as "a symbol associated with white supremacy" and denounced Donald Trump's campaign for its supposed promotion of the meme.[20][21] The same month, the two sources for Nuzzi's Daily Beast article revealed to The Daily Caller that they had coordinated beforehand to mislead Nuzzi (particularly about the existence of a campaign) under the expectation that she would uncritically repeat what she was told, with one saying, "Basically, I interspersed various nuggets of truth and exaggerated a lot of things, and sometimes outright lied — in the interest of making a journalist believe that online Trump supporters are largely a group of meme-jihadis who use a cartoon frog to push Nazi propaganda. Because this was funny to me."[22] The Anti-Defamation League, an American organization opposed to antisemitism, included Pepe in its hate symbol database but noted that most instances of Pepe were not used in a hate-related context.[23][24] In January 2017, in a response to "pundits" calling on Theresa May to disrupt Trump's relationship with Russia, The Russian Embassy in the United Kingdom tweeted an image of Pepe.[25][26] White supremacist Richard B. Spencer, during a street interview after Trump's inauguration, was preparing to explain the meaning of a Pepe pin on his jacket when he was punched in the face, with the resulting video itself becoming the source of many memes.[27][28]

In an interview with Esquire, Furie commented on Pepe's usage as a hate symbol, stating: "It sucks, but I can't control it more than anyone can control frogs on the Internet".[29] Fantagraphics Books, Furie's publisher, issued a statement condemning the "illegal and repulsive appropriations of the character".[30] On October 17, Furie published a satirical take of Pepe's appropriation by the alt-right movement on The Nib.[31][32] This was his first comic for the character since he ended Boy's Club in 2012.[1] In May 2017 it was announced that Furie had killed Pepe off in response to the character's continued use as a hate figure.[33] His death is of little concern because man comic book characters die and are resurrected many times.

Kek

"Esoteric Kekism" is a term for the parody religion of worshipping Pepe the Frog,[34] which sprung from the similarity of the slang term for laughter, "kek", and the name of the ancient Egyptian frog god of darkness, Kek.[35] This deity, in turn, was associated with Pepe the Frog on internet forums.[35][36] The internet meme has its origin on the internet message forum 4chan and other chans, and the board /pol/ in particular.[35][37] Kek references are closely associated with the alt-right[38][39][40][41] and Donald Trump.[42][43][44][45]

The phrase "kek" originated as a variation of the phrase "lol"[46][47] and seems to originate from the video game World of Warcraft.[48] The phrase then became associated with the Egyptian deity of the same name.[35] It references the occultism of Savitri Devi.[34][49]

During the 2016 United States presidential election, Kek became associated with alt-right politics.[50][51][52][53][54][55] Kek is commonly associated with the occurrence of repeating digits, known as "dubs", on 4chan, as if he had the ability to influence reality through internet memes.[56]

Online message boards, such as 4chan, first noted a similarity between Kek and the character Pepe the Frog.[57][36][58][59] The phrase is widely used[60][61][35] and 4chan users see Kek as the "'god' of memes".[62]

Other uses

  • Shadilay is an Italian Italo disco record made by Marco Ceramicola as 'P.E.P.E' which was released in 1986 that gained attention in January 2017 because the name of the Group ( P.E.P.E ) and image on the cover of the song loosely resemble the Pepe the Frog meme.[63]
  • Katy Perry once tweeted an image of Pepe to illustrate her jet lag.[5][8][64]
  • Nicki Minaj posted a twerking Pepe to represent her on Instagram.[5][8]
  • When the New Zealand government was accepting proposals for a new national flag, a design with Pepe was submitted.[65][66][67]
  • In January 2017, Wendy's tweeted an image depicting the "Wendy" mascot as Pepe. The restaurant immediately deleted the tweet and issued a statement: "Our community manager was unaware of the recent evolution of the Pepe meme's meaning and this tweet was promptly deleted."[68][69]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Priscilla, Frank (September 30, 2016). "The Strange Internet Journey Of Pepe The 'Chilled-Out Stoner Frog'". The Huffington Post. Retrieved October 3, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d Khan, Imad (April 12, 2015). "4chan's Pepe the Frog is bigger than ever—and his creator feels good, man". The Daily Dot. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  3. ^ a b "Pepe the Frog meme branded a 'hate symbol'". BBC News. 2016-09-28. Retrieved 2016-11-16.
  4. ^ "Pepe The Frog: From Innocent Meme To Hate Symbol". Super Deluxe.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h Kiberd, Roisin (April 9, 2015). "4chan's Frog Meme Went Mainstream, So They Tried to Kill It". Motherboard. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  6. ^ Furino, Giaco (August 3, 2016). "Pepe the Frog's Creator Talks Making Zine History". The Creators Project. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
  7. ^ a b Mazur, AJ (August 7, 2010). "Q&A with Matt Furie". Know Your Meme. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  8. ^ a b c d Collins, Sean T. (July 28, 2015). "The Creator of Pepe the Frog Talks About Making Comics in the Post-Meme World". VICE. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  9. ^ a b Haskell, Will (July 30, 2015). "This guy created the frog meme that's all over the internet — here's why he's 'kinda pissed off'". Tech Insider. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  10. ^ Blevins, Joe (October 28, 2015). "Read This: Could images of 4chan's "sad frog" meme actually be worth money?". The A.V. Club. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  11. ^ Bergado, Gabe (September 10, 2015). "The rare Pepe trade is booming on Craigslist". The Daily Dot. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  12. ^ Nair, Roshni (December 27, 2015). "Best of 2015: 15 memes that won the internet". Daily News and Analysis. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  13. ^ "Here are the 10 most important memes of 2015, according to Tumblr". Irish Examiner. December 8, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  14. ^ Resnick, Gideon (October 20, 2015). "4chan 4 Trump". The Daily Beast. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  15. ^ Dickson, Caitlin (September 12, 2016). "Trump's son, adviser share image featuring white nationalists' favorite cartoon frog". Yahoo News. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  16. ^ Sarlin, Benjy (August 25, 2016). "5 Things to Know About the 'Right'". NBC News. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  17. ^ Dovere, Edward-Isaac (September 12, 2016). "Why Clinton's bad weekend won't rewrite the race". Politico. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  18. ^ Kampeas, Ron (September 1, 2016). "Do alt-right's white identity politics sanction anti-Semitism?". J Weekly. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  19. ^ Nuzzi, Olivia (May 26, 2016). "How Pepe the Frog Became a Nazi Trump Supporter and Alt-Right Symbol". The Daily Beast. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  20. ^ Chan, Elizabeth (September 12, 2016). "Donald Trump, Pepe the frog, and white supremacists: an explainer". Hillary for America. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  21. ^ Revesz, Rachael (September 13, 2016). "Hillary Clinton attacks Donald Trump for posting Pepe the Frog meme". The Independent. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  22. ^ Bennett, Jonah (September 14, 2016). "Here's How Two Twitter Pranksters Convinced The World That Pepe The Frog Meme Is Just A Front For White Nationalism". The Daily Caller News Foundation. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  23. ^ Smith IV, Jack (September 27, 2016). "Pepe the Frog meme is now on the ADL's hate symbol database. Feels bad, man". Mic. Retrieved September 27, 2016.
  24. ^ "Pepe the Frog". Anti-Defamation League. September 27, 2016. Retrieved September 28, 2016.
  25. ^ Marcin, Tim (January 9, 2017). "Russian Embassy Posts Pepe The Frog Meme, A White Supremacist Hate Symbol, According To ADL". International Business Times. Retrieved January 10, 2017.
  26. ^ Beauchamp, Zack (January 9, 2017). "The Russian government just tweeted an image of a white supremacist frog". Vox. Retrieved January 10, 2017.
  27. ^ Murphy, Paul P. White nationalist Richard Spencer punched during interview CNN Politics 1/21/2017
  28. ^ Amatulli, Jenna Pepe's creator comments on alt-right leader Richard Spencer getting punched Huffington Post, 1/23/2017
  29. ^ Miller, Matt (September 28, 2016). "Exclusive: The Creator of Pepe the Frog Is Voting for Hillary". Esquire. Retrieved September 29, 2016.
  30. ^ "The Truth About Pepe the Frog". Fantagraphics Books. October 6, 2016. Retrieved October 6, 2016.
  31. ^ Wade, Cameron (October 17, 2016). "Pepe the Frog Creator Matt Furie Pens New Comic Showing Pepe's Alt-Right Nightmare". pastemagazine.com. Retrieved October 23, 2016.
  32. ^ Powell, Austin (October 17, 2016). "Pepe the Frog creator's new Trump comic captures the horror of the 2016 election". Daily Dot. Retrieved October 23, 2016.
  33. ^ "Pepe the Frog 'is killed off to avoid being a hate symbol'". BBC News. Retrieved 8 May 2017.
  34. ^ a b Smith, Blake. "Writings of French Hindu who worshipped Hitler as an avatar of Vishnu are inspiring the US alt-right". scroll.in.
  35. ^ a b c d e Tara Isabella Burton (2017-02-14). "Apocalypse Whatever". Real Life Mag. Retrieved 2017-02-24.
  36. ^ a b Menegus, Bryan. "Trump Supporters Outraged By Slight To Pepe Meme". Gizmodo.
  37. ^ "Trump Supporters And Neo-Nazis Are Using Secret Chatrooms To Harass Shia LaBeouf". Buzzfeed.
  38. ^ "The Emerging Racists: The Challenge of Covering the Radical Right". splcenter.org.
  39. ^ "Steal This Show S02E02: 'The Platform Is You'". TorrentFreak. 14 September 2016.
  40. ^ "In Elaborate Joke, Internet Provocateurs Turn 'Trash Bird' Into Nazi Icon". forward.com.
  41. ^ Goldberg, Michelle (23 February 2017). "Alt-Right Facts". Slate.
  42. ^ "Les trolls de 4chan sont persuadés d'avoir fait élire Donald Trump" (in French). Slate.
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  44. ^ Caitlin Dickson (November 23, 2016). "What 'alt-right' really means: a glossary of terms". Yahoo! News.
  45. ^ "More Swastikas Surface In Hell's Kitchen, Newtown Creek Nature Walk". gothamist.com.
  46. ^ "Mosque Arson Suspect Left Social Media Hints of Anti-Muslim, Anti-Semitic Views". splcenter.org.
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  48. ^ "Wew, lad: Everyone hates this meme that simply refuses to die". The Daily Dot. 12 September 2016.
  49. ^ Savitri; Devi, Savitri (8 June 2015). The Lightning and the Sun. Counter Currents Publishing, Limited – via Google Books.
  50. ^ Moomaw, Graham. "In Charlottesville, GOP candidate for governor Corey Stewart allies with alt-right-inspired blogger who wants to protect 'glorious Western civilization'". Richmond Times-Dispatch.
  51. ^ "Naked Nigel, the God Kek and modern politics". BBC.
  52. ^ James King (Nov 22, 2016). "Cucks & Kek: Racism's Old Guard Reaches Out To An Online Generation". Vocativ.
  53. ^ Colm Lock (1 December 2016). "Harambe and the magic of memes". The Mancunion. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  54. ^ "Meet the White Nationalist Trying To Ride The Trump Train to Lasting Power". motherjones.com.
  55. ^ Jay Hathaway (Nov 7, 2016). "Trump Fans Unleash Last-Minute Flood of Pepe the Frog Memes". The Daily Dot. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  56. ^ "Trump's Occult Online Supporters Believe 'Meme Magic' Got Him Elected". Vice.
  57. ^ Singal, Jesse. "4chan Isn't Sure Whether It's Excited the Times Wrote Up Its Anti-Semitism". nymag.com.
  58. ^ Sarah Posner (24 February 2017). "CPAC's Flirtation With the Alt-Right Is Turning Awkward". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  59. ^ "The alt-right is trying to co-opt that dumb purple bird on Facebook". The Daily Dot. 15 February 2017.
  60. ^ "4chan Trolling Shia LaBeouf's Anti-Trump Livestream". Heatstreet. 23 January 2017.
  61. ^ "Salon Frets That History Channel's 'Vikings' Will Be Co-Opted by White Supremacists". Heatstreet. 29 November 2016.
  62. ^ Hine, G. E., Onaolapo, J., De Cristofaro, E., Kourtellis, N., Leontiadis, I., Samaras, R., Stringhini, G., Blackburn, J. (2016, October 11). A Longitudinal Measurement Study of 4chan's Politically Incorrect Forum and its Effect on the Web. Social and Information Networks. Retrieved October 14, 2016. arXiv:1610.03452
  63. ^ Trump Supporters And Neo-Nazis Are Using Secret Chatrooms To Harass Shia LaBeouf BuzzFeed News
  64. ^ Notopoulos, Katie (May 11, 2015). "1,272 Rare Pepes". BuzzFeed. Retrieved January 4, 2017.
  65. ^ "Te Pepe by David Astil". New Zealand Government. Archived from the original on February 6, 2016. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
  66. ^ Hunt, Elle (May 14, 2015). "New Zealand's new flag: 15 quirky contenders". The Guardian. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  67. ^ Power, Julie (May 16, 2015). "New Zealand flag designs: Kwi, piwi or kiwi?". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  68. ^ Fleishman, Cooper (January 4, 2017). "Wendy's just tweeted the Pepe the Frog meme, a white supremacist mascot". Retrieved January 9, 2017.
  69. ^ Taylor, Kate (January 4, 2017). "Wendy's won and lost an epic Twitter troll war in just 24 hours". Business Insider. Retrieved January 9, 2017.

Further reading

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