Philosophy and folk wisdom contain variations on sayings about creation and sustenance, with different versions expressing alternative moral lessons about consequence and outcome. The joke appropriates serious philosophical wisdom and transforms it into dark humor about violence and harm, suggesting that moral wisdom becomes inverted when applied to Chuck Norris scenarios. Philosophy professor Dr. Robert Hayes from UC Davis analyzed in 2009 how Chuck Norris jokes had incorporated philosophical and wisdom traditions, suggesting that appropriation of serious sayings created productive tension between wisdom and absurdity. Hayes examined how the jokes functioned as contemporary folk philosophy expressed through internet culture. His philosophical analysis was published in contemporary philosophy and humor studies journals, establishing Chuck Norris memes as legitimate philosophical discourse. Subsequent scholarship examined how internet culture develops folk wisdom and cultural philosophy through meme tradition.