In this blog post, I will examine the concept of memes proposed by Richard Dawkins and the limitations that arise when applying meme theory, and critically review the problems with meme theory as a framework for explaining cultural transmission.
The term “meme” has become widely used in popular culture and internet culture. First introduced by Richard Dawkins in his 1976 book ‘The Selfish Gene’, the concept of the meme has since gained widespread public recognition and is now also used to refer to trending images, videos, and phrases circulating online. However, the widespread use of the concept of “memes” is a separate issue from whether it possesses sufficient validity as a scientific theory. For a scientific theory to be valid, its core concepts must be clearly defined, and it must be capable of providing logical explanations when applied to real-world examples. I, too, believe that memetics has limitations in this regard. Therefore, in this article, I will first examine the problems inherent in the definition of “meme” and then explore the explanatory limitations that arise when applying the concept of memes to the real world.
In ‘The Selfish Gene’, the author argued that genes, viewed solely from a biological perspective, are insufficient to explain certain aspects of human evolution. To address this, the book’s author, Richard Dawkins, introduced the concept of “memes” to explain human evolution from a cultural perspective. Just as genes are the basic units of DNA transmission, memes are the basic units of cultural transmission; and just as genes propagate themselves through replication, memes propagate themselves through imitation. In this way, Dawkins explains memes as self-replicators similar to genes. However, defining the concept of memes in this manner raises several questions. Notably, these include whether it is valid to apply meme theory exclusively to humans, whether imitation and replication can be viewed on the same level, and whether it is appropriate to apply the concept of “progress” to the evolution of memes.
First, let’s examine the scope of meme theory. ‘The Selfish Gene’ presents the argument that the human species can be viewed as distinct from other animals due to a unique characteristic of its environment: culture. Is this distinction valid? I believe it is not, because aspects of animal behavior can also be explained through the concept of culture. On Koshima Island in Japan, there is a well-known case in which a monkey named “Imo” began washing sweet potatoes before eating them, and this behavior subsequently spread to other monkeys. Additionally, in some chimpanzee groups, the behavior of removing the shells from nuts before eating them has been observed to spread within the group. Such behaviors cannot be explained solely by genetics; rather, they can be seen as having been formed through acquired learning and social transmission. In ‘The Selfish Gene’, Dawkins also explains cultural transmission among animals by citing the phenomenon of song transmission within flocks of saddleback birds. Of course, Dawkins viewed this phenomenon as a special case observed in animals and explained that cultural evolution in humans is far more powerful. However, considering that social learning and the transmission of behavior also occur in animals, there are limitations to explaining the phenomenon of cultural transmission as exclusive to humans. Even if we develop meme theory into a framework for explaining human cultural evolution, rather than completely excluding the phenomenon of cultural transmission observed in animals, we need to explain how cultural transmission in humans and animals differs in some respects and is similar in others.
Next, let’s examine whether imitation—the means by which memes are transmitted—is an appropriate concept to use in the development of memetics. In memetic theory, genes, memes, replication, and imitation are described as similar concepts, except for the presence or absence of physical existence. However, there is actually a significant difference between imitation and replication. Imitation involves not only the subject transmitting the behavior but also the object observing and accepting it, and these objects each possess different knowledge, experiences, and thoughts. Therefore, even when observing and learning a particular behavior, the content may be interpreted and acquired differently depending on the individual or group. This follows the same principle as how people may interpret the same information differently. Unlike the replication of genes, the transmission of memes involves the values, subjectivity, and surrounding environment of the recipient. Consequently, even if we assume that memes are self-replicators like genes, there are limitations to understanding mimicry in the same way as genetic replication. This is because the process of meme transmission involves not only simple replication but also the selection, modification, and reinterpretation of information. Ultimately, treating mimicry as a concept equivalent to replication risks oversimplifying the complex process of cultural transmission.
Furthermore, there are problems with viewing memes as self-replicators like genes and describing the direction of their change as “progressive.” The term “progress” generally implies an improvement or increase in degree or level. However, in the realm of the arts—such as music or visual arts—it is difficult to evaluate a work as more “progressive” than its predecessor simply because it has taken on a new form. Let’s take music as an example. As the era shifted from Classical to Romantic music, softer and more emotional compositions became popular; this is related to the fact that emotional expression was highly valued in the social context of that time. So, can we view this change as Romantic music having developed in a more progressive direction than Classical music? Of course, from a certain perspective, this change could be understood as progress in the sense that the range of values humans can actively pursue has expanded. However, we cannot simply assume that all cultural changes constitute cumulative progress toward a higher level than the previous stage. This is because culture changes in different directions depending on the era and social environment, and new forms do not necessarily replace or surpass previous ones. Therefore, to explain that changes in memes occur in a progressive direction—similar to changes in genes—it is necessary to define more clearly the criteria for “progress” as applied to cultural change. Otherwise, it may give the impression that we are forcing different phenomena to be explained in the same way merely to emphasize the similarity between memes and genes.
Now, let us move beyond the problems apparent in the definition of memes and examine the limitations that arise when meme theory is applied to actual human evolution. In her book ‘Memes’, Susan Blackmore explains how humans came to have large brains and highlights the role of memes in this process. The brain is an organ that requires a great deal of energy to maintain and function, and developing it to a large size entails various biological costs and risks. Therefore, she argues that genes alone are insufficient to explain the human brain’s large size and employs the concept of memes. However, this explanation does not provide a sufficiently concrete logical account of exactly what kind of memes were at work in causing the human brain to grow so large. It merely states that certain memes exerted sustained selective pressure leading humans to develop large brains. A similar problem arises when meme theory is applied to explain religion. It is argued that religious individuals who practice asceticism act in a way that prioritizes the replication of religious memes over the replication of their own genes, and that this behavior constitutes the strategy adopted by memes. However, here too, there is insufficient scientific explanation regarding exactly which characteristics of a meme elicit such behavior and how they were selected. Although meme theory was introduced to supplement the aspects of human evolution that are difficult to explain through genes alone, if precise logic and verifiable explanations are not sufficiently provided in the process of explaining those very gaps, it is difficult for the theory to fully supplement existing explanations. Ultimately, while the concept of memes may offer a useful perspective for understanding human cultural evolution, it clearly has limitations when used on its own to explain the process of human evolution.
We have examined various issues arising from the definition and application of memes. First, regarding whether it is valid to apply memes exclusively to humans, we must consider that social learning and the transmission of behavior also occur in animals. Furthermore, unlike genetic replication, imitation can vary depending on the knowledge, experience, and values of the individual receiving the information; therefore, it is difficult to understand it simply as a process of replication. Since cultural change cannot always be viewed as progress toward a better state than before, there are limitations to explaining the change of memes in the same way as genetic change. Furthermore, even when applying meme theory to specific phenomena such as the human brain’s large size or religious behavior, the theory’s explanatory power is limited if there is insufficient concrete explanation of which memes were selected through which processes and how they influenced human behavior and evolution. Of course, these issues do not negate the fact that culture changes through social learning and transmission. In cultural evolution research today, which studies cultural change and transmission, various approaches are being taken to empirically investigate how cultural traits become established, change, and spread within groups. Therefore, rather than rejecting the very attempt to explain cultural evolution, we need to carefully examine whether complex cultural phenomena can be explained solely by the simple concept of memes as self-replicators. While meme theory is significant in that it offers a new perspective on human cultural evolution, its explanatory power is inevitably limited if the concept is overly equated with genes or if all cultural phenomena are explained solely through the replication of memes. Therefore, we must be cautious about treating the concept of “memes” as a panacea for explaining various social phenomena; to account for cultural transmission and evolution, it is necessary to develop more specific and sophisticated theories based on actual observation and verification.
