‘The Fault In Our Stars’ Inspires Viral “It’s A Metaphor” Meme

The internet is buzzing with viral goodness after a new clip from the anticipated The Fault In Our Stars movie debuted last week at the MTV Movie Awards. In the clip, we see Hazel and Augustus meeting for the first time (the two main characters destined to fall in love), and we catch a glimpse of the chemistry between Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort. What else did we see a glimpse of? Some cheesy, seemingly “deep” lines of dialogue that sparked a Tumblr meme of epic proportions.

In the clip, Augustus puts an unlit cigarette between his lips but never lights it. He says, “You put the killing thing between your teeth, but you never give it the power to do its killing. It’s a metaphor.” No, really?

You put the killing thing between your teeth but you don't give it the power to do its killing, It's a metaphor<3 pic.twitter.com/2Yw3doQXWj

— CRUEL? (@Bookschangeyou) April 14, 2014

One tumblr user called the scene “the single most pretentious thing I’ve ever seen in my life.” Users have started uploading and sharing their take on “It’s a metaphor!” by putting things in their mouth and quoting the now infamous line. John Green himself even tweeted out his favorite one, proving he’s got a good sense of humor:

You put the killing thing between your teeth, but you don't give it the power to do its killing.

— John Green (@realjohngreen) April 17, 2014

For all those that criticize the ridiculousness of the line, MTV, who’s heavily promoting the film, sticks up for Augustus:

Being confronted with your own mortality has a way of making even the most grounded person prone to obnoxious, grandiose philosophizing, and if anyone has earned the right to be pretentiously metaphorical and precious about death, it’s probably the 17 year-old guy standing outside of a cancer support group wearing a prosthetic leg.

Nicely put. That still doesn’t mean we can’t get a laugh out of them.

Perhaps the reason the meme went so viral is that Tumblr’s The Fault In Our Stars fan base is vast and dedicated, so of course, they’re destined to be the movie’s biggest critic. However, Tumblr can also use its large fan base to its advantage: A Tumblr contest called “Demand Our Stars” will determine what states the cast will visit on their promotional tour. All you have to do is “like” the post that holds a photo of your state; the four posts with the most likes will win. Pretty cool, Tumblr. Perhaps now, we can all be a bit kinder to The Fault In Our Stars adaptation.

Image via Youtube