When I was scrolling through Instagram over the summer, I randomly came across a meme about “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen that I could tell was supposed to be funny, but I just could not understand it since I had never read the book.
Apparently, looking at one Jane Austen meme was all the reassurance Instagram needed to infer I was a lover of everything classic. Suddenly, my entire explore page consisted of textposts and memes about books I had never read.
Although I’d never really had an abiding interest in Victorian literature, some of the memes about “Pride and Prejudice” were still funny out of context. Feeling both guilty and intrigued, I decided to read the actual book to have a deeper understanding.
Austen’s 19th century writing style initially made “Pride and Prejudice” difficult to read, but as I started to understand the plot, the Instagram memes began to make more sense, and I realized the book is actually hilarious and relatable.
The book follows Mr. Darcy, an arrogant man who looks down on the Bennets, a family that has low status and doesn’t act appropriately in social situations. My favorite memes include Darcy insulting Elizabeth’s family, her class and status and then proposing, followed by her obvious rejection but his apparent surprise. Just a tip for Mr. Darcy: Try not to insult the woman you want to marry right before you pop the big question.
I’ve spent hours scrolling through classic literature memes and sending them to my friends, who hadn’t really liked the “Pride and Prejudice” movie until they understood it better through the memes.
After my great meme-book-collab experience with “Pride and Prejudice,” I followed the Instagram algorithm’s trail of memes, leading me to re-read the “Harry Potter” series. Pairing the franchise with memes made the books and movies more enjoyable than they had ever been. The meme of Neville on the top half of the image exclaiming, “Oh my God, I’ve killed Harry Potter!” and a picture of Voldemort below him, thinking: “TEACH ME! How did you do it? Wait, what? Tell me your secret.” never fails to make me chuckle.
After reading “Pride and Prejudice” and rereading Harry Potter for the third time with a healthy supplement of memes, I’ve learned to immediately look at memes relating to books I’m reading so I can enjoy them to the fullest extent. I thank my explore page for teaching me the power of memes, although I now cry a little when I see my Instagram screen time.