Kobe Bryant- Black Mamba or Ball Hog?

The meme is an evolutionary replicator, defined as unit of information (a catchphrase, a concept, an expression of fashion, philosophy, culture, or politics) that is copied from person-to-person by imitation. W. J. T. Mitchell poses the question ‘What do pictures want?’, implying that pictures may have an independent life- drawing on the rhetorical argument that the life-like properties of pictures affect people in different ways. This argument is mirrored in the creation of internet memes whereby individual pictures can be used to generate a host of varying interpretations. Concurrently, popular consensus can be conveyed through various different pictures. Fan-created memes can be used to convey messages advocating socio-cultural and socio-political beliefs, stereotypes and personal interpretations; conversely they can also serve as "creative vandalism" to subvert the official's representations of whatever issues they choose. For instance, memes concerning Kobe Bryant predominately stereotypes him as a "ball hog" due to his playing style, which relies heavily on shooting the basketball rather then distributing it to other team mates. This goes against the ideals of team-play that has traditionally been associated with team sports like basketball. This perception also challenges Bryant's star image as a global superstar and as one of history's greatest basketball athletes, whose accomplishments arguably rivals that of all-time greats like Michael Jordan. Many fans also cite Jordan’s selfless nature as a key reason in his superiority over Bryant.