Inside You There Are Two Wolves

Where Does The 'Inside You There Are Two Wolves' Meme Come From?

"Inside you there are two wolves" is an evergreen phrase often used to represent the opposing viewpoints held by one person. The catchphrase is used to signify how one person can harbor contradicting ideas that may sometimes cause tension or strife.

INSIDE YOU THERE ARE TWO WOLVES you should probably see a doctor, the recommended amount of wolves inside you is zero


But as with all poignant proverbs, the phrase has since been adopted into meme vernacular to joke about how some contradictions can lead to pretty funny results. Here's the origin of the meme.

Where Does The Phrase 'Inside You There Are Two Wolves' Come From?

The exact origins of the proverb are unclear, although it has been attributed to Christian pastor Billy Graham in 1978, as well as the Cherokee Native American tribe.


Two Wolves A Cherokee Legend An old Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life. "A fight is going on inside me," he said to the boy. "It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil - he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.' He continued, "The other is good -he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside you -and inside every other person, too." The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, "Which wolf wll win?" The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."

When Did 'Inside You There Are Two Wolves' Become A Meme?

The meme grew popular sometime in late 2018, notably taking off on Facebook in November of that year. The earliest known reference to the meme is a post by Facebook user Scorty Pippin, followed by a similar parody being posted to /r/comedyheaven. Tumblr user @unclefather turned the meme into an object labeling format, with the punchline being, "You have depression."


dws me INSIDE OF EACH OF US ARE TWO WOLVES ONE IS NAMED TOBY THE OTHER IS NAMED TOBY BOTH WOLVES ARE NAMED TOBY Inside Each of Us Are Two Wolves The other has depression One has depression You Have Depression

How Did The "Inside You There Are Two Wolves' Meme Evolve?

A popular version of the meme going into the year 2019 was labeling both the wolves as gay, and insisting that the reader was gay. Another popular version of the meme was to do away with wolves altogether, instead inserting random third-party animals to create a nonsequiter-style anti-joke. A good example of this is a meme featuring two rats with the plague, which indicates that you too have the plague.

INSIDE YOU THERE ARE TWO WOLVES ONE IS GAY THE OTHER ONE IS GAY YOU ARE GAY INSIDE OFYOU THERE ARE TWO RATS in 814, at the death of CHARLEMAGNE SASCOTEANT SLES Seale of Miles 100 IRELAND Boundap TISH KINGDO THE OTHER HAS THE PLAGUE ONE HAS THE PLAGUE KINAD RB lgariahs AL Dunube tS Baika RLATIC SEA CORSICA dr RACE Rome Cunstantinople Boaorus INieres Toledo Naples SARDINIA RDOV AS I EASTE RN E M T M YOU HAVE THE PLAGUE LLPCATES CO., N.Y. 40 Greenwr Long




For the full history of the "Inside you there are two wolves" meme, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.



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