Bonus: Check out Dave Chappelle's "Racial Draft"
For this blog post view the videos below of comedians Hari Kondabolu, Emily Heller, W. Kamau Bell, Louis C.K., and Kristina Wong as they make jokes about issues of race and gender. In 2-3 paragraphs discuss your thought about humor and social protest. In your post consider the following questions: what role can comedy play in revealing the absurdity of racism and sexism? Is comedy an effective form of protest? Why or why not? How can humor help in opening up discussions about subjects---like racism and gender---that are often fraught and polarizing? Are the examples below legitimate forms of protest? Why or why not? Your responses do not have to answer all of the questions. Pick one or two to help you formulate your commentary. Responses must be posted by Wednesday, May 28th by 5:00 pm.
Comedy appeals to the greater public and it has served as a free form of speech that despite not being taken seriously provides a critique of society during that period. Thinking back of jokers in the ages of kings, and how their form of entertainment despite ridiculing the king, was acceptable. Today, comedians have up scaled in the entertainment business and have exploited their performance to shed light on contemporary issues. In this case all of them utilize the issue of race and gender, of course within the realm of their own personal experience, and do not draw on the context of someone else. They reveal and play on the absurdities of sex and gender in order to resist the stereotypes that have been created of them, in effect to ridicule them. The ridiculing serves as a resistance to the socially constructed idea of sex and gender, in a way by ridiculing the comedians are negating the importance of sex and gender. I do not know if that is the appropriate phrasing, but in essence what I am trying to get at is that comedians have lots of leeway for social critique and they do so effectively.
ReplyDeleteHumor is a way to break the ice, to basically point out the elephant in the room. Once that gets out of the way, there is an ability to see the truth in the joke and to openly discuss it without fear of being judged since the ice has been broken. The fact that sex and gender are delicate topics of discussion that easily escalate and break into so many other sensitive issues, is facilitated by humor and comedy. Its like, when you are having a huge debate, you can just bust a joke, and the tension eases, allowing the ability to not only provide your argument but to also understand the others, instead of being blind to that side. So yes, comedy is a great way of resistance that not only allows for the comedians ability to critique but also to open and prompt other people into seeing things that are serious and usually aren't open to discussing because it is a sensitive issue to discuss.
I really enjoyed this selection of comedians, their critiques on sex and gender draws from their own personal experience being male or female and being white/black/asian. Diving into the stereotypes that their group is forced to confront everyday and ridiculing them by embracing them, thus negating them.
--Maria Davila
Humor is a great way for discussing difficult issues like race and gender. There is a certain leeway given to comedians that isn't present in many other types of speech and that allows them to broach uncomfortable subjects more easily. Much of comedy does consist, after all, of pointing out things either that make people uncomfortable or that everyone thinks and no one wants to say. By bringing up these issues in a non-hostile environment where you can't really tell how much of what a comedian says he or she actually means, it is possible to make controversial statements without making the listener defensive. Comedy doesn't have to abide by the rules of political correctness, which is why so many people enjoy it in the first place.
ReplyDeleteAs a result, I believe humor makes an effective form of protest. The comedy segments showed above are great examples of people pointing out observations about society or their own flaws to speak to common truths that are often avoided. Humor allows people to point out the irrationality present in so much of daily life and can often be used as a tool to unite people. The Daily Show and the Colbert Report are perfect examples of this. Both of these satirical news shows have gained an immense following through their comedic takes on the news, and have, through their use of humor, motivated that following to donate to multiple charities, Super PACs, or in one case to attend the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear in Washington D.C., which had over 215,000 attendants. Comedy is often not thought of as a powerful tool for protest, however it is clear that is can have a profound influence on people.
Just as the musicians and songwriters used their talents to speak out and bring people together for a common cause, so the comedians are using their ability to be funny to bring attention to an issue with a long and terrible history. I think that comedy can play an important role in gaining attention, but it will not be an effective form of protest without further discussion or action.
ReplyDeleteI think W. Kamau Bell is a good example of effective protest. He makes a lot of jokes about racism and admits that he himself falls into the mindset that permeates society today, but he also has a talk show that brings up these issues (in a funny way of course). He jokes about his own interracial relationship with his wife, and points out how far America has come, and also how far America has to go since people are still fighting for the right to be married. Although the story about the interracial couple and their son was ironic and funny, it points out the absurdity of America’s laws that exclude a people-group. Even without a serious talk, the point is clear enough that it gets people thinking.
The reason I think it is important that the discussion be carried on, as Kamau does with many issues on his talk-show, is that jokes can be easily dismissed. For example, I laughed and I agreed with Hari Kondabolu about how racism is absurd, but easily went about my day without thinking of it again. That is not to say that Hari is not a talented comedian, and I do not know if he has his own talk-show or other form of activism going on, but just to show that there is a limit to how much comedy can do. By itself, comedy is not enough. It is a start and a means to bring people together, but there needs to be more than that. There have been times when comedy is so controversial that there may be interviews that help draw attention to the issue. This is effective as well. So it is important that the comedians keep bringing up these issues such as racism, but for an effective form of protest they must go beyond the joke.
The selected videos above depict seemingly lighthearted social commentaries and amusing anecdotes that not only entertain, but also reflect the state of affairs on prevailing issues such as racism and gender discrimination. While it is certainly possible to deliver similar messages using more conventional and 'serious' means, humor is an effective form of protest in that it provides people a way to react to absurdities in life through the use of absurdity. As humor tends to be interesting, relatable and charged with different emotions, it carries more 'human' elements that change distanced issues into personal ones, thereby opening and clarifying significant subjects.
ReplyDeleteIn particular, the videos show speakers communicating their observations on largely tabooed (or at the very least, avoided) contemporary issues, mostly through the use of anecdotes and jokes that challenges stereotypes by embracing them. There is a relaxed, casual atmosphere with little tension, as well as a certain degree of intimacy and interaction between the speakers and the audience, helping the speakers get their points across. Even when pointing out delicate issues such as how a certain group face negative stigma in society, speakers react in a casual manner, acknowledging that the problems do in fact exist rather than avoiding them. If expressed any other way, the discussion might become largely one-sided and restrained, as if the speaker is simply trying to push his or her opinions onto the audience without the slightest consideration. Yet with satire, humor facilitates the act of communication by easing the audience into the issues, rendering the subjects into humanized, relatable and personal things as a way to convey the speaker's worldview, strengthen existing beliefs or induce attitude and behavioral change.
Jenny Chim
Comedy serves as a great outlet for individuals to begin and discuss topics of race and sex incorporating several key aspects of music, dance, theater, and prose. Using humor to discuss rather serious topics allows the comedians to provide a great deal of social commentary on a particular topic. Whether it is about race or war, humor opens the door to reveal ideas that may have not been discussed about previously. This simple and exciting form of speech truly has the ability to set the stage for a protest, attracting like-minded individuals to begin and support a cause. The comedians in the videos mostly ridicule the absurdity of various topics centralized around race and gender roles. These commentaries definitely make the audience think about societal views as well as the roles that they play within his or her community. Like the previous posters have stated, comedians do have a certain leeway when discussing certain topics. This leeway allows the comedians, in my opinion, to discuss certain topics that would have never otherwise been brought up in conversation. When people watch comedy they are aware of this leeway, and play off the comedian to begin and develop their own opinions to a certain topic.
ReplyDeleteThe examples that were provided do serve as forms of protest. Each comedian stays true to what they believe about certain topics, even though it might be heavily centered on humor. Once a topic is thrown into conversation, humor has the ability to make it not seem as ruthless. The Colbert Report and the Onion are perfect examples of news that is twisted in some that satirizes the topic at hand. Although much of the content is not completely true, the satire is what makes the protest. The common man through comedy is able to gain a better grasp about current topics leading to the inner making of a successful protest. All in all, comedy serves as an important tool in congregating like-minded individuals to begin and protest against a cause.
I love comedy. I believe that its the perfect medium to discuss controversial tyopics such as gender, race, and equality. Furthermore, I think that satire is the perfect form of comedy to explore these topics. One of my favorite books is Candide by Voltaire. By employing satire, Voltaire is able to point out the pitfalls of his monarchal society, amazingly, without the advent of free speach. Today, comedic artists use the same convetions of satire and comedy in order to point out the shortcomings of our modern day society.
ReplyDeleteThe female asian comedian in the first video, for example, points out that asians, in fact, "do NOT have small penises" and that white people "say some stupid shit sometimes." She is able to say this publically with the advent of comedy. If she were to say this with an air of seriousness, she would be ridiculed as a racist and would not be tolerated in the public scope. Instead, people love her and laugh at her and praise her for her comedic genious. This is why comdey is so powerful, you are not only ble to get your message across, you are abe to get the guards of your listeners down by being personable and by making them laugh (this makes it more likely people will listen to you!). Aside from the first video, Ithink Dave Chappelles picture was hillarious. He is pointing out how white people, and upper class people, think of black people as lower than them saying that they do not have the virtue of fidelity. Chappele shows us that infedelity does not have race preference and people need to stop feeling so entitled or above others due to the color of their skin.
Comedy and humor are used to amuse and please an audience. The use of humor and exaggeration in many of these sketches serves to satirize and expose the reality of racism and sexism. Take for instance Louis CK’s “Being white” comedy clip. The statements that CK puts forth would never be acceptable in a politically correct conversation: “I’m not saying that white people are better, I’m saying that being white is clearly better. Who could even argue?” When he makes this clarification, everyone laughs in the background and the expression on his face is not a somber one. The delivery of this line is key, because without humor or satire, he’s really pushing racial boundaries. CK touches upon the ideas of white privilege and the past of European colonization, especially when he states that he could get in a time machine and it would always be awesome. In some ways, comedy allows the speaker to be free in expressing how they feel despite the conventions of polite conversation.
ReplyDeleteComedic satire is quite powerful because it allows the speaker to voice common opinions or sentiments without being taken too seriously. Perhaps though, within this space they can really express true problems and issues such as racism and sexism, unfiltered. This lack of filter is really important for opening up discussion. In this way, comedy helps people to think about the subtleties of race and gender without necessarily assigning blame. As soon as people begin to attack one another in discussion and assign blame, people are put on the defensive and forced to guard themselves, which can prevent thoughtful, honest discourse of pressing issues.
As a final example, Emily Heller’s “Feminism is not very fun” provides entertainment, but at it’s core, it provides thoughtful insights to prejudices feminists face. When she says that feminists “ …have a bit of a recruiting problem right now” she is not over-exaggerating, but the phrasing and delivery make it seem kind of funny. The problem is when you ask people if they believe if women and men should have equal rights, the response is generally positive and slightly banal: Of course men and women should have equal right-- what a silly question! But when the question is phrased “Do you consider yourself a feminist?” the response from the same people is usually along the lines of: me? No, I’m not a crazy feminist! In reality, the questions are actually equivalent, but the general public does not always directly associate feminism and gender equality. In short, comedy is an extremely effective way to reveal the unreasonableness of sexism and racism in a environment that is a great way to frame the discussion of these controversial topics.
Julia Petersen
Comedy is an effective tool to reveal the absurdity of racism and sexism. The power of laugh and enjoyment that are impregnated in comedy brings the audience in the sense of involvement and engagement. Also, comedy is a universal language, so whatever the people’s backgrounds are, comedy can lead people to grasp the same ideas and social issues, such as absurdity of racism and sexism. Rather than making the issues seriously, comedy makes some social issues lightly, putting sarcasm and criticism to make the social issues to be simple. Comedy has a power to make people's view on absurdity of racism and sexism lighter, making them to get interest in those problems, not turning their interests away from those issues. Therefore, revealing the absurdity of racism and sexism through comedy play is the most effective medium to make ordinary people to get interest in and focus on those social issues.
ReplyDeleteI watched Louis CK's "Being White." It was very interesting and I felt a kind of enjoyment and involvement in the issue of racism. Since middle school, students have learned the racism on colored races. Therefore, with the basic knowledges of what happened to the colored races in the past, Louis CK's comedy was powerful and effective whatever the audiences' age groups are. He well-satirized racism through being sarcastic on the good things about using a time machine as a white. By binding the race issue with common history made all of the audience can agree and understand, with sort of enjoyment. Therefore, according to the example, comedy helps to open a fastidious race issues by ridicule and degrade the level of seriousness. So, it could be the legitimate form of protest that can draw anyone into the social issues that are universally well-known.
Humor as a form of rebellion is similar to rebellion in art, except I believe that humor is more universally appreciated by the masses. Some people may understand a work of art, but most people will get a good joke. By using humor in the media, we set a norm for what is considered acceptable as well as for what is considered absurd. Assuming that most people conform to the group that they are in, I believe that this is effective for getting people to agree on the same issues. For example, if majority of the audience laughs at the absurdity of a racist issue, then even individuals who did not find the issue absurd or funny will still be pressured to laugh so as not to deviate from the rest of the group. Applying the social psychological theory of cognitive dissonance, people will not want to be inconsistent in their beliefs and actions, therefore they will modify their cognition to uphold consistency. For example, those deviant individuals who conformed to the rest of the audience may later think "Oh, well I laughed at that issue as well, so maybe it is something I do consider absurd." These people will convince themselves that they always were in agreement, failing to recognize the influence of conformity.
ReplyDeleteAlthough this theory is probably not true or applicable to many individuals in this situations, my point is that it has the potential to be a very powerful force, especially when the media is involved. By displaying racist and sexist issues through the popular media, these issues will become popular. However, the power of the media can propagate both progressive and negative material. For example, I personally disagree with the use of humor concerning racist issues when the jokes stereotype a certain demographic. If comedians are telling jokes about how much black people love fried chicken and whatnot, then the audience will popularize these stereotypes as well. By perpetuating these stereotypical associations with different races, the races will always be divided. I appreciated Hari Kondabolu's point that there should not be a notable difference between people of different race; that we are all essentially the same. In contrast, perpetuating this divide between races, whether it is a harmless joke or even promoting segregated racial groups (clubs, associations, etc.), will work against our fight against racism. I believe that, ultimately, the only way to eradicate racism is to stop recognizing that we are people of different race, but rather that we recognize our common humanity above all else.