Analyzing Rhetorical Context Through Internet Trends

In this lesson, students analyze the rhetorical situation surrounding viral social media challenges. Students will explore how these digital trends serve as cultural texts that communicate collective values, beliefs, and identities. By investigating speaker, audience, context, and purpose, students practice essential rhetorical analysis skills required for AP Language & Composition. This lesson bridges modern social media discourse with formal academic skills like crafting engaging introductions and conclusions.

 

Before the Lesson

• Optional Prep: Instruct students to find one example of a meme or Internet challenge meme they feel connected to before class (or allow them to explore during class). Some ideas of viral trends in the last 5 years are below. Review each challenge and make sure it is appropriate for you and your students. You can also facilitate a group brainstorming session with certain categories.

Viral Challenges & Formats	Hashtag Movements & Commentary	Meme Trends & Pop Culture Moments
"How It Started / How It’s Going" (2020): A meme format showing personal or collective growth over time, used for humor, nostalgia, and storytelling. "Don’t Rush Challenge" (2020): Originating on TikTok, this challenge involved people transitioning from casual to glam looks, highlighting transformation and community, especially during COVID lockdowns. "TikTok Dance Trends": E.g., Renegade, Savage Love, Say so, Cuff It - These dances often went viral alongside popular songs, shaping music charts and youth culture. "Little Miss" Memes (2022): Users captioned "Little Miss" characters with personal quirks or mental health traits, making humorous and self-deprecating identity statements. "NPC Livestreams" (2023–2024): TikTok users acted like non-playable video game characters while receiving virtual gifts—commentary on internet performance, capitalism, and absurdity.	#BlackoutTuesday (2020): Part of the Black Lives Matter protests, users posted black squares on Instagram to show solidarity, sparking debates about performative activism. #GirlDinner (2023): A TikTok trend showing minimalist or mismatched meals (e.g., cheese, crackers, pickles), often poking fun at feminine habits or romanticizing everyday life.   #BookTok (Ongoing): A powerful TikTok subculture influencing book sales. Viral books exploded in popularity through this trend.   #NoMakeupSelfie & #MakeupTransition Trends: Before/after or glow-up challenges focusing on beauty standards, personal care, and vulnerability.   #Deinfluencing (2023): A backlash against consumerism and over-hyped products, where creators warned followers about what not to buy.	“This You?” Callout Tweets: Users use a past post to highlight hypocrisy or irony in a person’s current statements.   Barbenheimer (2023): A dual-release meme phenomenon combining Barbie and Oppenheimer, creating fan art, memes, and ironic mashups of two vastly different films.   “No One:” / Absolute Silence Format: A meme where a person or character does or says something unprompted, highlighting absurdity or awkwardness.   “Corecore” Aesthetic Videos: TikTok trend using emotional audio and clips from media to critique or reflect modern emotional detachment, capitalism, or youth disillusionment.   Roman Empire Meme (2023): Women asking men how often they think about the Roman Empire, revealing unexpected gender/cultural gaps and inspiring funny, reflective responses.

• Review Rhetorical Situation Vocabulary: Ensure students are familiar with key rhetorical terms: speaker, audience, purpose, medium, exigence.
• Prepare or distribute reflection handouts or digital docs with the guiding questions

Materials Needed

• Slideshow with links to meme examples 
• Student worksheet  with guiding  questions
• Devices for student internet access
  

What To Do

1. Anticipatory Set / Warm-Up (5–7 minutes)

• Brief discussion to activate prior knowledge about memes and cultural trends.
• Ask students to share their current knowledge about Internet memes and viral challenges. Reference the chart above to help guide students’ ideas.
  

2. Guided Rhetorical Analysis: General Trends (15–20 minutes)

• Complete Part 1 of the module using the slides and/or their own research. This part of the assignment asks students to situate Internet memes and viral challenges in a broader context. Encourage them to explore multiple versions of the meme across different platforms (X, Reddit, TikTok).
  

• Students analyze general rhetorical components:
  • Speaker: Is it an individual? A collective? What persona is being created?
  • Medium: How does platform shape meaning?
    Audience: Who is the intended audience? Who engages with it?
  • Context/Exigence: What events shape its appeal? What social commentary is it making?

Tip: Allow students to discuss findings in pairs or small groups before sharing key takeaways.

3. Focused Analysis of a Single Example (20 minutes)

• Complete Part 2 of the module. In this part, students will select a specific meme or Internet challenge.This specific example should be ‘situated within the context’ they analyzed in Part 1.
• They then analyze its rhetorical situation more deeply using the structured questions:
  Who is the speaker and what persona is created?
  • What rhetorical choices affect tone, credibility, or message?
  • What is the context behind this meme?
  • What values, beliefs, or truths does it reflect?

Tip: Encourage students to make connections to their own experiences and contemporary cultural values.

4. Class Discussion or Gallery Walk (10 minutes)

• Ask for a few volunteers to share their selected memes and explain why they connected with them.
• Facilitate a group discussion:
  What do these examples say about society today?
  • What makes some memes more impactful or memorable than others?
  • How can understanding memes help us write stronger intros/conclusions?

5. Entering the Conversation: Evidence Practice (10 minutes)

• Discuss: "What kind of evidence would strengthen a commentary or argument about viral trends or memes?"
• Students brainstorm relevant types: personal anecdote, cultural reference, statistics (e.g., meme virality), expert opinions, etc.
• They write 2–3 sentences explaining how a type of evidence could support an analysis of this meme trend.

6. Wrap-Up / Exit Ticket (5 minutes)

Students respond to one or more of the following prompts:

• What’s one takeaway you have about how memes function rhetorically?
• How can analyzing memes help us write better introductions or conclusions?
• What values or cultural truths do you think today’s memes are reflecting?
  

Optional Extension Activities

• Use the meme format as a hook for a future argument or narrative essay.
• Compare different meme formats (e.g., “NPC memes,” “This you?”, “Barbenheimer”) to explore evolving rhetorical conventions in internet culture.

 

Lauren Peterson , M.A. Ed. - Highlands High School Schoolwide Literacy Leader; Curriculum and Instructional Coach; creator of College
Board pilot curriculum designed to remediate common AP English Language challenges; AP English Language Reader and Trainer.