Memes: The joke in times of war

Caricatures have a long tradition as a humorous form of social criticism. In the 2010s, they were joined by memes: reworked images that exaggerate or ridicule the content originally depicted. Anyone can make them quickly, from photo material and with a simple image editing program, sometimes more complex, sometimes very simply supplemented with a sentence or a saying.

Their authors are rarely known, not only because of the thousands of shares on social networks, but also because the unauthorized use of the image material often violates copyright.

In particularly dark times, cartoons and memes are booming. Both make it possible to deal with the real horror, currently with the war in Ukraine. Despite their terrible background, they ideally make their viewers smile – and thus encourage them not to be defeated.

A large number of current caricatures and memes suggest that the Russian President Vladimir Putin could have chosen Ukraine as an opponent with whom he has a tough nut to crack.

The cartoonist Theo Moudakis, for example, has Putin riding a bear in a drawing for the Canadian newspaper “Toronto Star”. The bear was and is a popular allusion to the geographical size of Russia, especially in western countries. This bear loses a paw as it enters Ukraine in Moudaki’s cartoon. His rider Putin realizes contritely: “I didn’t see THAT coming.”

The Norwegian cartoonist Morten Morland drew Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj for the British daily newspaper “The Times”.

The German cartoonist Nadia Menze expresses the fact that Ukraine, which is underestimated by Putin, is supported by other countries. She illustrates Russia as a shark that is suddenly faced not only with the smaller Ukraine, but with many smaller fish that together are stronger than the big aggressor. Menze’s symbolism was also liked by the international hacker network Anonymous, which shared the cartoon on Twitter.

The insanely long table at which Vladimir Putin received French President Emmanuel Macron or German Chancellor Olaf Scholz shortly before the invasion of Ukraine humorously challenged the memes community – and provided a motif for a large number of memes. Anyone who likes the expansive piece of furniture can now – according to this meme – look forward to the “Putin” model for entertaining guests at the Swedish furniture store Ikea.

Guest and host can also use the extra-long table as a seesaw or for physical exercise. And as bitter as it is: If Putin and Macron had actually played badminton, the political effect would have been hardly smaller.

The cartoonist Tango Gao from Shanghai also reacted to the political meetings at Putin’s table. However, he doesn’t mockingly push the table to the extreme, but interprets it as a coffin: Putin and his generals make decisions that cost other people their lives.

Of course, oversizing does not have to be limited to pieces of furniture. How about, for example, the longest horse in the world?

There has been much speculation about the connection between pompous staging and Putin’s lack of self-confidence. This caricature stages the Russian military power as compensation for any deficits in the commander-in-chief’s self-esteem.

In this drawing, street artist Loic Monk combines a symbol of the West – a fast food chain – with the bloody actions of the Russian president, who becomes the “Murder King”.

In a total of two terms as prime minister and his fourth as president, Vladimir Putin has been at the helm of Russia since 1999. Of course, it hasn’t just been a popular motif for caricatures or memes since Russian troops invaded Ukraine.

In 2013, the State Duma passed a law against “homosexual propaganda”: Public confession of homosexuality, positive statements or reporting can result in fines and imprisonment. After the law came into force, numerous cases became known in which homosexuals were ambushed and beaten by unknown perpetrators via dating platforms. As a result, this image spread, which Vladimir Putin is said not to like at all.