Modern Good Reads discussion

Someone asked me the other day if I thought there were any topics that were inappropriate when it comes to comedy. As someone who usually isn't shy about pushing the envelope, it made me stop and think hard; which is always a good thing. So what do you think, folks? Are there topics or subject matter that, no matter how skillfully handled by an author, that are simply out of bounds and not suitable for laughter?

I remember the trouble Gilbert Gottfried got into making jokes about the Japanese right after the Tsunami. And, often Leno, Stewart, and Letterman cancel 'live' shows after some disasters apparently because it is 'too soon' for laughter.

I'm not sure I always agree with that stand. Sometimes laughter can be cathartic. I also lean toward an almost absolute belief in freedom of speech in subject matter. Maybe it's more a point of timing than topic.

Medieval kings employed the jester to broach taboo subjects to keep him human despite his power.

I think really, its the recent disasters, where lots of people die, that sort of thing is just inappropriate for comedy. Death is rarely ever funny, and when its in the media, so often comedians grab onto it and spin it, inappropriately.

Beyond that, nothing is sacred. :)

I think sexual assault and racism are tricky categories--the best way to tackle those is from a subversive perspective. I catch myself laughing at some really horrifying things though. Milan Kundera and Kurt Vonnegut were great at getting dark laughs out of very disturbing situations.

Nothing is sacred to the writer, only to the reader. The American Bible Belt took offense at Jesus Christ: Shooting Star. The end result of the resulting stoush was me being banned from posting on FB pages for 15 days. All I have to say about that is if their faith in God was as strong as they say it is they wouldn't have been bothered by a 4000 word story about a gay Jesus Christ. Authors need to be true to themselves and may the dice fall wherever.

Darrin wrote: "Nothing is sacred to the writer, only to the reader. The American Bible Belt took offense at Jesus Christ: Shooting Star. The end result of the resulting stoush was me being banned from posting on ..."

Well, you know what they say, "There's no such thing as bad press."

A little bit of controversy can go a long way towards gaining notoriety and sales.

Worked wonders for Dan Brown.

I'm with you, Darrin. I don't see why you should have been banned?? That's just stupid...

There is material, and there is execution. I watched Ron White's new vid the other night on Netflix. Toward the end he does a bit about a bit involving Mamie Eisenhower that he performed while drunk for Dr. Phil and friends on the back of a yacht in Monaco. The inner bit about Mrs. Eisenhower is just appalling. The way he uses that fact (and that it wasn't funny) inside the larger bit is hilarious. This is because he diverts us from the intended and failed humor to a larger, truer, and funnier riff that relies on self-deprecation. I don't think anything ought to be off the table when it comes to humor, but some stuff just is by its very nature. The comic may be useful in helping to shed light on our foibles and humanity, but his/her primary aim is to be funny. On some level this means a fundamental understanding of the audience, and ultimately it's the audience that decides what is appropriate and what is not.

Generally I would agree that (almost) nothing should be off-limits for comedy, certainly not religion which desperately needs the litmus test of ridicule for beliefs to be scrutinised. Where I've become more squeamish in recent years is a trend in UK comedy to accept jokes about rape or sexual abuse, which in my opinion, only serves to normalise those activities. Talking about such things, debating causes and solutions, is one thing but implicitly (and sometimes explicitly) belittling the pain of victims, is not helpful.

The thing that I love about Bill Cosby is that, when I am watching one of his comedy routines on television, I don't have to grab the remote to change the channel when one of my younger grandchildren wander into the room.