Philosophy
My Fellow Comedists,
This weekend, I am giving a paper at the 4th annual conference of the Lighthearted Philosophers Society. My topic is joke theft. The cardinal sin amongst stand-up comics is stealing someone else's material. But to define joke theft, you need (1) a notion of joke ownership and (2) a notion of joke identity. When I write and perform a joke, what is it I have claim to and when is your joke the same as my joke?
I want to pump some intuitions from the congregation on this topic (easy, Jeff). Tell me if you think the following two jokes are examples of the same joke. The first was written by Will Carey, for my money the best joke writer on the Baltimore/DC circuit -- go see him if you get a chance. The second is mine. Are they the same joke or not? If I performed the second joke on stage (I never have), would Will be justified in accusing me of joke theft?
Will's joke*: I walked into an optimist club it was half empty, but when I left it was half full. They do amazing work.
My joke: They have an Optimists Club, so shouldn't also have a Pessimists Club? I was going to start one, but, nah, it would never work.
His is better, but is it a better joke or a better variant of the same joke?
Live, love, and laugh,
Irreverend Steve
* This joke was used with express permission of Will Carey and let it be duly noted that he was incredibly cool about it, is in no way hypersensitive about joke theft, and has been very thoughtful in correspondence about the topic.
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Philosophy
Joke Theft
My Fellow Comedists,
This weekend, I am giving a paper at the 4th annual conference of the Lighthearted Philosophers Society. My topic is joke theft. The cardinal sin amongst stand-up comics is stealing someone else's material. But to define joke theft, you need (1) a notion of joke ownership and (2) a notion of joke identity. When I write and perform a joke, what is it I have claim to and when is your joke the same as my joke?
I want to pump some intuitions from the congregation on this topic (easy, Jeff). Tell me if you think the following two jokes are examples of the same joke. The first was written by Will Carey, for my money the best joke writer on the Baltimore/DC circuit -- go see him if you get a chance. The second is mine. Are they the same joke or not? If I performed the second joke on stage (I never have), would Will be justified in accusing me of joke theft?
Will's joke*: I walked into an optimist club it was half empty, but when I left it was half full. They do amazing work.
My joke: They have an Optimists Club, so shouldn't also have a Pessimists Club? I was going to start one, but, nah, it would never work.
His is better, but is it a better joke or a better variant of the same joke?
Live, love, and laugh,
Irreverend Steve
* This joke was used with express permission of Will Carey and let it be duly noted that he was incredibly cool about it, is in no way hypersensitive about joke theft, and has been very thoughtful in correspondence about the topic.
- 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...
- How Soon Is Too Soon?
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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...
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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...
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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...