Philosophy
My Fellow Comedists,
A technical question this weekend. Is there a difference between being the subject of a joke and the butt of a joke? If a joke turns on an ambiguity about a property associated with a group, does that joke necessarily make fun of that group? If someone in traffic in front of you had a bumper sticker that said "Autistic kids rock," would that seem inappropriate? Would the fact that the pun is based on a recognizable behavior be an act of mocking? Does it have to portray it in a negative light, does it have to belittle the act, or is pointing it out, drawing attention to it enough? The point here is that, unlike Polish or blonde jokes, where the stereotypical element is clearly intended to denegrate the members of the group, this is simply a recognizable difference with no judgment made about it. If it is morally problematic, is it the drawing attention to it that is the problem, or is it the appropriation, that is, is it the using the unusual behavior as a tool for some else to get laughs even if we are not saying that it is a bad thing?
Other examples, jokes that do not necessarily cast a group in a negative light, but have a mechanism that plays off of recognizable features?
Live, love, and laugh,
Irreverend Steve
- How Soon Is Too Soon?
My Fellow Comedists, This week, good brother YKW sent me a link to Gilbert Godfried's Twitter feed full of Japan earthquake/tsunami jokes.What does Japanese Jews like to eat? Hebrew National Tsunami. What does every Japanese person have in their apartment?...
- The Feast Of Saint Gilbert
My Fellow Comedists, This weekend is the feast of Saint Gilbert. Gilbert Gottfried turns 55 this weekend. Probably best known now for his voice work in Aladdin and as the AFLAC duck, he is a master stand-up. Indeed, Gilbert Gottfried is a throwback. He...
- What Counts As A Joke?
My Comedist Brethren and Sistren, I have a theological question for everyone this weekend. In Comedism, nothing is as holy as the joke. but the question is what counts as a joke. The standard structure of a joke has two parts. First is the set up. Set...
- Damn It Jim, I'm A Doctor Not A Comedian
Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere, Yesterday would have been Gene Roddenberry's 87th birthday. Trekkies have born the brunt of many a joke, so this weekend let's turn the table and open it up to your favorite Star Trek...
- Why Is This Funny? Jokes About The Disabled
Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere: A question about Comedist theology and its relation to morality this weekend. I received this picture in an e-mail, entitled, "If you laugh at this, you're a bad person." It's funny....
Philosophy
Butts and Subjects
My Fellow Comedists,
A technical question this weekend. Is there a difference between being the subject of a joke and the butt of a joke? If a joke turns on an ambiguity about a property associated with a group, does that joke necessarily make fun of that group? If someone in traffic in front of you had a bumper sticker that said "Autistic kids rock," would that seem inappropriate? Would the fact that the pun is based on a recognizable behavior be an act of mocking? Does it have to portray it in a negative light, does it have to belittle the act, or is pointing it out, drawing attention to it enough? The point here is that, unlike Polish or blonde jokes, where the stereotypical element is clearly intended to denegrate the members of the group, this is simply a recognizable difference with no judgment made about it. If it is morally problematic, is it the drawing attention to it that is the problem, or is it the appropriation, that is, is it the using the unusual behavior as a tool for some else to get laughs even if we are not saying that it is a bad thing?
Other examples, jokes that do not necessarily cast a group in a negative light, but have a mechanism that plays off of recognizable features?
Live, love, and laugh,
Irreverend Steve
- How Soon Is Too Soon?
My Fellow Comedists, This week, good brother YKW sent me a link to Gilbert Godfried's Twitter feed full of Japan earthquake/tsunami jokes.What does Japanese Jews like to eat? Hebrew National Tsunami. What does every Japanese person have in their apartment?...
- The Feast Of Saint Gilbert
My Fellow Comedists, This weekend is the feast of Saint Gilbert. Gilbert Gottfried turns 55 this weekend. Probably best known now for his voice work in Aladdin and as the AFLAC duck, he is a master stand-up. Indeed, Gilbert Gottfried is a throwback. He...
- What Counts As A Joke?
My Comedist Brethren and Sistren, I have a theological question for everyone this weekend. In Comedism, nothing is as holy as the joke. but the question is what counts as a joke. The standard structure of a joke has two parts. First is the set up. Set...
- Damn It Jim, I'm A Doctor Not A Comedian
Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere, Yesterday would have been Gene Roddenberry's 87th birthday. Trekkies have born the brunt of many a joke, so this weekend let's turn the table and open it up to your favorite Star Trek...
- Why Is This Funny? Jokes About The Disabled
Brothers, Sisters, and Transgendered Comedists Everywhere: A question about Comedist theology and its relation to morality this weekend. I received this picture in an e-mail, entitled, "If you laugh at this, you're a bad person." It's funny....