The
Seriously Erotic Politics of Laughter by Cynthia and Julia Willett analyze the
power dynamics behind comedy. They argue that humor is
a powerful tool for feminists.
They reevaluate comedy
from harmless fun to powerful communication, a way to “unravel and disrupt
conventional norms through ridicule” in order to “free our thinking” (16). This
argument has great validity in it that it reestablishes
communicative norms, and has the potential to further feminist ideas into
traditionally non-feminist arenas. I see great parallels with the comedian Dave Chappelle. Dave Chapelle is able to poke fun at racism, faulty politics, and prejudices of people while at the same time showing how ludicrous these ways of thinking are.
In principle I agree with the authors. Comedy is essential to the proliferation of the voice. However, it is important to note that not everyone has the power to use comedy in that light. If we look at modern day late night Tv hosts and Comedy News such as the Jon Stewart show, women are never hosting the show or are in a support role. I see a lot of potential in this idea of comedy and feminism however, until Ellen DeGeneres is not the only comedian with a television show, this potential cannot be realized.
I agree with Joseph in that many major comedy networks use old white men, like most business ventures, in lieu of the voices of women or minorities. Thus, jokes that could be made and utilized by feminists are made and utilized by their male stand-ins and inappropriately executed. This brings to mind the question about "who should be making these jokes." Can a male feminist make light of feminist issues in good humor during a comedy sketch or is it still inappropriate for him to do because he is a man?
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