The Brief: News that the 200,000 tonne cargo ship is unstuck from the Suez Canal has been met with memes celebrating and lamenting its removal.
DEEP DIVE
The Ever Given: the ship that was blocking the Suez Canal has officially been dislodged after almost a week spent disrupting the flow of approximately 10% of global trade. Memes about the ship being unstuck add to discourse that’s been circulating online all week with jokes and silly takes on this disruption of the international economy.
Among these memes are maritime pop culture references about ships and boats like these allusions to Mama Mia, Parks and Rec, and SpongeBob SquarePants.
the Suez Canal today pic.twitter.com/JA4kFguEtK
— Carrie Wittmer 🦇 (@carriesnotscary) March 29, 2021
This tweet is how I learned the ship was unstuck https://t.co/ixa1KVLqDX
— Jake Dacy (@jamazingjake) March 29, 2021
BREAKING: exclusive footage of the suez canal boat getting unstuck pic.twitter.com/z4tAQZgFc5
— Peter Marshall (@peterjmarshall) March 29, 2021
As memes about the ship surged in popularity, people started to use it as a metaphor for elements of modern life. Now that the ship is unstuck, the comparisons continue.
the big stuck boat may be unstuck, but its lessons on life remain timeless:
✅ be dummy thicc
✅ refuse to move
✅ get attention— Matt Bellassai (@MattBellassai) March 29, 2021
There’s been a lot of talk about who really freed the ship…
the woman who freed the ship from the suez canal pic.twitter.com/57mns0fdbL
— gabe bergado (@gabebergado) March 29, 2021
They unblocked the suez canal pic.twitter.com/LPwuHp56bc
— Nico Correia (@notn1co) March 29, 2021
View this post on Instagram
As people rallied around the ship while it was stuck, many claimed it as an anti-capitalist hero for its disruption of the economy. Others expressed their horniness for the stuck ship. When the news broke that it’d been dislodged, the phrase “PUT IT BACK” started trending on Twitter as people (mostly jokingly) demanded that the ship return to its original position and re-block the canal.
I love how the ship is unstuck and everyone is like PUT IT BACK pic.twitter.com/z3o0Ao3lln
— ✨ (@carries_town) March 29, 2021
THE BOAT'S UNSTUCK?? PUT IT BACK RN PUT IT BACK pic.twitter.com/XfHAU64ohH
— olivia💙 (@olivia_chsm) March 29, 2021
GUYS THE SHIP IS UNSTUCK WHAT THE HECK IT JUST WANTED TO CHILL PLEASE PUT IT BACK pic.twitter.com/mbMSWVcWYT
— abi your beloved (@thebonecrusher_) March 29, 2021
A Whisper App meme on the topic:
— whisper app (@whispers_finest) March 29, 2021
The release of the Ever Given also inspired some thoughtful reflections on the ship’s journey and how it relates to our own experiences.
it's really not fair that the big boat is unstuck while the rest of us are just left here, sitting in our eternal stuckness
— Emily Dreyfuss (@EmilyDreyfuss) March 29, 2021
as they unblocked the suez canal… i couldn't help but wonder who would unblock my heart pic.twitter.com/hHsU5WTQqQ
— gabe bergado (@gabebergado) March 29, 2021
Some people are just sick of hearing about the ship…
— frankie (@frankieplsrelax) March 29, 2021