My Ancestors Are Smiling At Me
Part of a series on The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. [View Related Entries]
About
My Ancestors Are Smiling At Me is a memorable quote from the 2011 adventure video game Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Online, the phrase has been used as the caption for various images of people about to be decapitated.
Origin
On November 11th, 2011, the video game Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim was released in the United States. At the start of the game, an unnamed Stormcloak Soldier Soldier is captured and before he is decapitated, he says, "My ancestors are smiling at me, Imperials. Can you say the same?"
Spread
On June 10th, 2012, KnowYourMeme user SoleilNoir posted a This Kills The Crab image macro with the caption. The image features a Meme Generator watermark, so it is possible that the meme predates this upload.
On April 14th, 2016, YouTuber [2] Aussie Viking II published a video with the phrase as a title. The video features the scene's audio played over the decapitation of a Barbie doll. The post (shown below) received more than 52,000 views in two years.
On December 9th, Imgur [4] user PoisonPotato published a list dump of various image macros featuring the phrase. Within 15 months, the list has been viewed more than 500 times.
On February 6th, 2017, Facebook [1] account TES.SkyrimGuard published an image macro of the scene, captioning it "Dammit, Bethesda this man deserve a name." The post (shown below, left) received more than 2,500 reactions, 90 comments and 490 shares in one year.
The following month, Redditor [3] TheGreatRoh captioned an image of police taking a man into custody with the phrase as caption in the /r/Anarcho_Capitalism subreddit. The post (shown below, center) received more than 80 points (85% upvoted) and 20 comments in one year.
Later that year, on August 12th, Facebook account GodEmperorTrump[5] posted an image of James Damore, the former Google employee fired for "advancing harmful gender stereotypes in our workplace," holding a sign that reads "Fired For Truth." The post (shown below, right) received more than 4,000 reactions, 670 shares and 80 comments in seven months. =
On November 2nd, 2017, Tumblr [6] user @lord-kitscherener captioned an image of the cartoon character Bugs Bunny with "Mmm my ancestors are smiling at me, Doc, can you say the same?” The post (shown below) received more than 120,000 notes in six months.
Various Examples
Search Interest
External References
[1] Facebook – TES.SkyrimGuard's Post
[2] YouTube – My ancestors are smiling at me imperials can you say the same
[3] Reddit – My ancestors are smiling at me Imperial
[4] Imgur – My Ancestors are smiling at me Imperials… (page removed)
[5] Facebook – GodEmperorTrump's Post
[6] Tumblr – lord-kitschener's Post
