The COVID-19 pandemic that broke out in Israel in February 2020 prompted widespread public response, which included a deluge of humorous memes. The current article discusses the main meme cycles of the pandemic with the aim of uncovering the functions of the humorous meme, and particularly its singular language, which incorporates the universal and the particular, the global and the local, the hegemonic and the subversive. The memes are examined in their immediate context, as responses to news announcements, restrictions, and rumors relating to the pandemic, and from a comparative perspective, with emphasis on the various functions of disaster jokes and the use of folklore in response to previous epidemics, crises, or risks. Alongside the hybrid nature of the genre, these meme cycles demonstrate that COVID-19 is not just a threatening virus but a new reality that undermines our experience of time and space, evoking old beliefs and new, and threatening to change everyday practices. These narratives not only reflect the incongruities evoked by the virus, but also give vent to anxieties and aggressions brought on by the pandemic and convey a communal need to protect and foster group cohesion and a local sense of belonging.

中文翻译：

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大笑话？以色列COVID-19模因和对风险的集体应对措施的构建

2020年2月在以色列爆发的COVID-19大流行病引发了广泛的公众反响，其中包括大量的幽默模因。当前的文章讨论了大流行的主要模因循环，目的是揭示幽默模因的功能，尤其是它的单数语言，其中融合了普遍的和特定的，全局的和局部的，霸权的和颠覆性的。在对模因的直接研究中，作为对与大流行有关的新闻公告，限制和谣言的回应，并从比较的角度，着重于灾害笑话的各种功能以及为应对先前的流行病而利用民间文学艺术，危机或风险。除了类型的混合性之外，这些模因循环表明，COVID-19不仅是威胁性病毒，而且是一种新现实，破坏了我们对时间和空间的体验，唤起了旧观念和新观念，并威胁着改变日常习惯。这些叙述不仅反映了病毒引起的不一致，而且消除了由大流行引起的焦虑和侵略，并传达了保护和促进群体凝聚力和当地归属感的共同需要。