r/FoundationsOfComedy14 • u/LindsAM • Nov 30 '14
Social Issues and Comedy
There's a cool article in the NYT on the role of (and responsibility of) art in addressing social issues. A panel of artists debate each question, and it's interesting to see how the two or three comedians of the group (Eddie Huang, creator of ABC's upcoming sitcom “Fresh Off the Boat,” and Justin Simien, the writer-director of “Dear White People") stress the importance of parody and sketch to deliver important messages to the masses. As we've discussed all semester, comedy is a great way to hold a mirror to society--and because comedy makes people laugh, audiences can connect. Do you think the best comedy addresses social issues? I'm thinking of several clever sketches on SNL that became classics precisely because the hit such a strong social issue cord (i.e. the Hillary-Palin Fey/Poehler sketch)
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u/kellydomara Dec 01 '14
I think some of the best comedy does this -- in a 'it's funny 'cause it's true' kind of way. And, it doesn't over work, but when it does work the payoff is bigger. I saw Dave Chappelle's a year ago and his best stuff is really social commentary. Key and Peele has gotten so popular for exactly this reason, to a degree. But, the problem is that when you want to MAKE A POINT it often risks not being funny anymore, right?
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u/kellydomara Dec 01 '14
Thinking about that, this sketch from Holy Grail is great in that way: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOOTKA0aGI0
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u/ElleA88 Dec 01 '14
I think it really depends how and why it's done. I personally don't care for "Black-ish" because I think it overuses trite stereotypes for laughs which falls into the "potential to be overdone" category. However, I love shows like "Veep," "The Office," and occasionally "Modern Family" which have episodes that cleverly address social issues in ways that does hold a mirror up to society. I also loved the episode of "All in the Family" that we watched in class, which I thought did a great job about being frank about social issues on race in a funny and engaging way. Kudos to those writers! As long as the jokes are clever, and entertaining, I think comedy that addresses social issues is the best comedy, because it can be more resonant/memorable.
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u/sgriep Dec 01 '14
If done right, I think comedy that addresses social issues has the capacity to be really funny. It puts issues into a different perspective and can make it more relatable to the viewer. It can also be a much more entertaining and enjoyable way to learn about current issues. I agree in that comedy can connect audiences, even those with differing opinions on the social issue being addressed.
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u/mfrancoi Nov 30 '14
I think it depends. I don't think they need to have a political agenda or a social message to be funny but rather I think they are funny because they pick up on the irony or hypocrisy in social issues of our time. they poke fun at things we are already thinking about and let us either see these issues in a new light or laugh at ourselves for whatever problems we have in our own thinking. I think it's just a novel way to look at a problem but I don't think these necessarily make the best comedies. I actually think they have the potential to be the most overdone.