Humor is not only to entertain, but “to convey with impunity messages that might be dangerous or impossible to state directly” as argued by Alain de Botton, a Swiss philosopher, writer, and television presenter. Humorists sometimes use their platform in order to send their arguments and/or messages across. Because they say things in a joking matter, they are able to touch upon a topic, which at times can be inappropriate or politically incorrect, and give their opinions and comments while they come out of the argument and the fight with minor scratches. Many subjects such as, sexual orientation and race, are just a few of the topics humorists talk about, which make them a vital function in society.
Some may say or think that humorists do not
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Michael Richards learned just that during his L.A.’s Laugh Factory comedy club stand-up performance “where he took to making racist remarks, including use of the n-word, to some African-American members of the audience who were being loud during his set”(Ghahremani Internet). Who knows whether or not Richards truly meant his racist remarks, but in all this, it did serve a function. This shows just how the outlook on race is. Although the world has gotten better at its ideas over different races and cultures, this just goes to show how some of those ideologies still exist today, so it should not come as a surprise when one is confronted by people like these. Although Michael Richards did not get the feedback he was hoping for, someone else did. Bert Williams was a black actor who played African American caricatures. During the time that he was alive, racism against blacks was a completely normal thing. Instead of protesting stereotypes against African Americans, “Williams hoped his audience would come to learn about, relate to and connect with him” by “creating accessible and successful jokes” (Black Comedians Poke Fun at Racial Stereotypes Internet). Stand-up comedy over racial stereotypes can be very criticized because of the offensiveness that it brings to many, but “this, however, is a sign of a healthy comedy culture because it means that comedians are pushing social boundaries” (Cohen Internet). Bert Williams’ career in the entertainment industry actually beats down the ideology of racism among many white Americans. He played a very vital and direct role in society even in his time. He changed the perception of many people and what they believed to be true of African Americans. Williams created a pathway where blacks and whites could get along and find something in which they could relate to. Humorists have taken humor and “jokes
A prime example is when Williams say, “Niggardom,” I am guessing that it means the state of being a nigga, which in it self is hilarious. Which is why the whole audience laughs when he says it, they laugh so much that Williams pauses and proceeds to say it a second time, “Niggardom.” I cannot help but laugh because funny is funny. Why its funny is the problem. To me a nigga is an ignorant person, who come in all shape, sizes, education back round, and personalities. With this connotation of a nigga, I began to understand that we laugh because we can relate what Katt William say’s about nigga’s; whether we see it in our life experiences or in our self’s. At least that why I laugh because when I think of “niggardom,” I recall all the time I acted like a fool, i.e. being a
For example, the comedy shows The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon expresses satirical humor concerning politics. His show also demonstrates political satire by telling jokes and even impersonating political figures for the audience. He creates humor through sarcasm that focuses on real issues. His sarcastic humor causes others to feel more confident in their criticism toward politicians. For example, “Jimmy Fallon expresses his humor about Donald Trump, impersonating his appearance and imitating his voice while talking about politics. He uses his humor by impersonating Donald Trump and his sweeping generalizations with Madea (Rogo).” Jimmy Fallon shows people his views through humor and it creates a sense of community to express their agreeable and disagreeable views. As we discussed some ideas about satirical humor that affects political changes, it was important to reveal their feelings about changes in life and drove them to look upon their society or government more
Psychologists, sociologists and anthropologists study humor because it is a fundamental culture value, but they still can’t determine why certain things make some people laugh and others not. There are “humor quotient” tests that are designed to measure an individual’s sense of humor, but these tests are questionable. These tests aren’t accurate because almost all humor depends on cultural background knowledge and language skills. Not every person in the whole world, or even in one country share the same background knowledge and skills, therefore they cannot have the same type of humor. “The fact remains that individuals vary in their appreciation of humor” (Rappoport 9). Since humor varies from individual to individual, humor lies in the individual. How successful or funny a joke is depends on how the person receives the joke, humor cannot be measured by a statistical
Steve Almond’s “Funny is the New Deep” talks of the role that comedy has in our current society, and most certainly, it plays a huge role here. Namely, through what Almond [Aristotle?] calls the “comic impulse”, we as a people can speak of topics that would otherwise make many of uncomfortable. Almond deems the comic impulse as the most surefire way to keep heavy situations from becoming too foreboding. The comic impulse itself stems from our ability and unconscious need to defend and thus contend with the feeling of tragedy. As such, instead of rather forcing out humor, he implies that humor is something that is not consciously forced out from an author, but instead is more of a subconscious entity, coming out on its own. Almond emphasizes
“The practical disengagement of humor…helps explain the opposition between amusement and negative emotions.” (530) There are three effects of humor; irresponsibility, blocking compassion, and promoting prejudice. Humor can take away what we are/should be doing in life and sometimes there isn’t anything wrong with that. Sometimes when we hear a hateful thing we just laugh it off as if it was no big deal when it really was. “An
In an article published by “Journal of Blacks in Higher Education” Lawrence states that “even though I am always troubled by public use of the term nigger, the most uniquely hateful words in the American vocabulary. And yet I would never criticize Chris Rock for when, where and how he uses it” (Lawrence 84). The reason why the writer in the article stated the he do not criticize Chris Rock for using the word Nigga he fell as if American is ‘censoring and policing black creative and expression” (Lawrence 84). Racial slurs can be positive in the African American culture because it is an image that project how black can become better parents for their kids at home and role models, how education is very important and good work ethics. “On the other hand the significance of Mr. Richards’ upheaval is about more than terrible drama strategy. Jamie Masada, the proprietor of the Laugh Factory, and Paul Mooney, a black humorist who used to compose for Richard Pryor, have joined legislators and activists, including the Democrat of California, in requiring a conclusion to the utilization of what they call the N word by everybody including blacks” ( Allen 1). This is why individual in America looks at racial slurs differently because its interpretation black culture and black entertainment depending on how they perceive the jokes.
According to Everything’s an Argument by Andrea A. Lunsford and John J. Ruszkiewicz, “Humor has always played an important role in argument.” (38). Humor itself is something that activates amusement or laughter. Moreover, in popular culture, satire is a tool that is used to point out things in our society. Satire opens the minds of people to philosophies they might completely deny, using humor.
Africanisms in America are a highly surveyed topic for the black community. Joseph E. Holloway describes Africanisms as “those elements of culture found in the New World that are traceable to an African origin” (Holloway 2). I believe, that africanisms are the traditions and cultural behaviors of African Americans that resemble the some of the same traditions and cultures in Africa. Which makes you ponder about what current elements does our culture use that ties back to Africa. Which in fact there are several africanisms that still exist. African Americans have retained an essence of Africa in their speech, hair care, clothing, preparation of foods, and music by over centuries of separation from the Dark Continent.
Humor is more than just amusing entertainment to pass the time. Though jokes and witty banter can be shallow, humor can go deeper than surface level to convey messages to audiences who would otherwise be close-minded about certain ideas. Humor is a great tool to get audiences to change the way they think, feel, and act. In “Saying Goodbye to Yang,” Alexander Weinstein uses humor to criticize some of society’s faults such as the way it has become heavily reliant on technology, racially insensitive, and judgmental.
In Alain de Botton’s book, Status Anxiety, he argues that the aim of humorists is not solely entertainment, but also to convey a message that isn’t always okay to state directly. There are many places where his argument can apply. Even with humor, some topics are still too controversial to joke about; However, in most cases, humor can lighten things up and make it easier to discuss topics that otherwise would not be as easy to talk about without heavy arguments. There are many cases that would make his argument true. There are many examples that support his argument, and that help to show the importance of humor in arguing, including cartoons, comics, works of literature, and also when thinking of hosts of television programs.
At this time, controversial topics are really hard to talk about without offending someone. Nowadays you could potentially offend someone just by saying one wrong word. But some comedians are able to talk about these controversial topics in a way that doesn’t spark negative backlash. Trevor Noah is a comedian from South Africa who talks about his life during apartheid. In his comedic bits he talks about apartheid and he is able to make fun of it even though he grew up in apartheid. In this essay I will use Trevor Noah’s book, Born a Crime, and one of his stand up bits to show that humor is an effective way to talk about sensitive or serious topics or events.
Make no mistake that slave owners came up with the word Nigger and it was only supposed to mean an individual, who is lazy, unwise, and good for nothing, but somewhere along the history lines of slavery the N word began to be used more as racial insult against the non-white Americans of that era. It would also be irrational for one to assume or to contemplate that slaves did not poke fun at their masters after a hard working day at the cotton plantations. That is why for that reason it should come to no surprise that the black African Americans invented comedy back during the slavery era. It is believed that “slaves were treated with favour for putting smiles on their master’s face by the way they performed and slave masters would take turns to send their slave performers off to a neighbouring plantation to amuse another family, as well as showing off the talented darkie the senders posed”(Littleton, 2006.p.7).
Humor is something that everyone can relate to. It's all around us, used every day, by everyone. Below, I’ve found three comedic items that tickled my funny bone. I made sure that each one actually made me laugh, therefore actually possessing humor rather than attempting to be humorous. Although they all share a similarity in being funny, each one captures a different aspect humor. One touches the ironic side of humor, while another touches the dark side, and the other one hits the slapstick humor. Humor is all around us and should be enjoyed and embraced. Let’s jump in.
If there is one way to bring a smile to someone’s face, it is laughter. Funny jokes, comical stunts, sarcasm- Every person is different when it comes to what makes them laugh. Some find dry humor comical. Others think sarcasm or joke-filled ranting are the best. ‘Comedy’ is such a broad term, broad enough to allow everyone to find something they find comical. In fact, ‘comedy’ includes a specific type of drama, one where the protagonist is joyful and happy endings are expected. Comedy is like a drug; it allows you to escape reality. When we say the word ‘comedy’ in the present, we are generally referring to a type of performance which provides humor. However, in its broadest sense, comedy has only one purpose: comedy makes people smile and
Humor has been the source of entertainment throughout history. Today humor is practiced in movies, plays, songs, television shows and radio. Humor has brought fame and fortune to those who have mastered its power.