{"id":"samuel-johnson-reading","name":"Samuel Johnson Reading","summary":"Samuel Johnson Reading is a reaction image built from a 1775 painting of the English writer squinting at a rolled up book with a baffled look. It took off in the early 2010s as the visual for 'Dafuq Did I Just Read?' style jokes and is still used whenever someone wants to react to confusing internet content.","tags":["samuel johnson reading","man looking at book","dafuq did i just read","classical art meme","reaction image","funnyjunk meme"],"howToUse":[],"imageCount":9,"nsfw":false,"images":[{"url":"https://fcdtoybbbn2ccxbp.public.blob.vercel-storage.com/images/samuel-johnson-reading/samuel-johnson-reading-samuel-johnson-cover-diptych.webp","caption":"The two Joshua Reynolds portraits of Samuel Johnson that anchor the 'Samuel Johnson Reading' meme.","width":1920,"height":1080,"nsfw":false},{"url":"https://fcdtoybbbn2ccxbp.public.blob.vercel-storage.com/images/samuel-johnson-reading/samuel-johnson-reading-dafuq-did-i-just-read-macro.webp","caption":"A classic image-macro version of the meme, adding the caption 'DAFUQ DID I JUST READ?' to the Reynolds portrait.","width":448,"height":517,"nsfw":false},{"url":"https://fcdtoybbbn2ccxbp.public.blob.vercel-storage.com/images/samuel-johnson-reading/samuel-johnson-reading-space-marine-anatomy-tweet.webp","caption":"A 2020 tweet by @extra_vertebrae employing the meme as a reaction to Warhammer 40K lore.","width":536,"height":807,"nsfw":false},{"url":"https://fcdtoybbbn2ccxbp.public.blob.vercel-storage.com/images/samuel-johnson-reading/samuel-johnson-reading-liberty-slavers-two-panel.webp","caption":"A political two-panel meme using both Reynolds portraits to riff on Johnson's famous critique of American slaveholders.","width":421,"height":900,"nsfw":false},{"url":"https://fcdtoybbbn2ccxbp.public.blob.vercel-storage.com/images/samuel-johnson-reading/samuel-johnson-reading-reynolds-reading-portrait.webp","caption":"The original Joshua Reynolds portrait that became the source image for the 'Samuel Johnson Reading' reaction meme.","width":446,"height":469,"nsfw":false},{"url":"https://fcdtoybbbn2ccxbp.public.blob.vercel-storage.com/images/samuel-johnson-reading/samuel-johnson-reading-johnson-at-computer-panels.webp","caption":"A photoshopped two-panel version of the meme transplanting Johnson in front of a computer.","width":468,"height":895,"nsfw":false},{"url":"https://fcdtoybbbn2ccxbp.public.blob.vercel-storage.com/images/samuel-johnson-reading/samuel-johnson-reading-johnson-portrait-collage.webp","caption":"A low-resolution collage combining multiple Samuel Johnson portrait crops.","width":520,"height":700,"nsfw":false},{"url":"https://fcdtoybbbn2ccxbp.public.blob.vercel-storage.com/images/samuel-johnson-reading/samuel-johnson-reading-reading-portrait-closeup.webp","caption":"A close-up crop of the Reynolds portrait that fuels the meme's classic 'confused reading' reaction.","width":662,"height":630,"nsfw":false},{"url":"https://fcdtoybbbn2ccxbp.public.blob.vercel-storage.com/images/samuel-johnson-reading/samuel-johnson-reading-reading-puzzled-two-panel.webp","caption":"The canonical two-panel reaction template pairing Johnson reading with his puzzled follow-up expression.","width":419,"height":829,"nsfw":false}],"historyUrl":"https://fcdtoybbbn2ccxbp.public.blob.vercel-storage.com/images/samuel-johnson-reading/history.md","related":["confused-nick-young","confused-math-lady","blinking-white-guy","monkey-puppet","spanish-laughing-guy","first-time","observe","no-no-he-got-a-point","success-kid","sad-pablo-escobar","kombucha-girl","none-of-my-business"],"popularityRank":3021,"license":"Meme images and history: templates, screenshots, photos and fan edits, many of copyrighted material or real people. Explicit and offensive memes and images are included and flagged nsfw. Check you have the right to use an image before publishing."}