List,
I call such expressions as "My God" an "oath". I see them as very powerful
memes. They have the components which I view as necessary for the meme I
call <imagination> (though to be fair to Wade, yes, "all parts of speech"
can be declared memes and/or studied by memetics--some are better examples
than others).
<Imagination> assumes that someone sets up a meme complex through:
*forming an ideal
*disregarding the historical precedent for such a formation
(Anyone interested in how I came up with these two requirements? Hint:
The meme called <art> demands a historical context and results in an
ideal...the next meme, developmentally is <imagination> which won't form
unless <art> is rendered useless by the host).
Anyway, to idealize someone is to form a circular idea "complex" as regards
one's own idealization/destruction. "Oh my God" organizes an entire complex
around the ambivalence illustrated in taking the term "god" (self projected
onto other) and making it into a oath for both pleasure (idealization) and
displeasure (destruction)--that is, it involves the entire life/death of the
host and all ideas related to this complex.
Brett
Brett Lane Robertson
http://www.window.to/mindrec
MindRec ICQ "chat" UIN 6630756
Command, n.:
Statement presented by a human and accepted by a computer
in such a manner as to make the human feel as if he is in
control.