Monday, April 6, 2009

Humor and Stuff

I don't want to insult the class or anything, but does anyone else feel like the semester is kind of dragging at this point? I mean, we all came into this class knowing that the best way to make something less funny is to talk about why it was funny. But the mechanical pace that all classes must use has made reading and watching these supposedly humorous pieces a chore. The readings for today's class weren't funny to me, so i tried to look into the text to find out why, but that just made less and less funny. By the end, i was in a worse mood then when i started to read something that is widely regarded as comedy. I guess i have at least learned in this class that this is the opposite reaction i am supposed to have. As i delve into my stand up comedian presentation, i am actually worried that i will find david spade less funny than before i started. What do you guys think?
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3 comments:

  1. Abigail Lambke7/4/09 10:59

    That is why you should never study things you love - just enjoy them instead.

    One of the things I've learned from the class is that humor does not equal fun. Humor might make social commentary more palatable, but that doesn't mean it should be pure enjoyment. We could just look at fluffy dumb humor, but we learn much more about society, humanity, and ourselves from looking at how humor works as a vehicle for serious and important subjects.

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  2. Michelle Parrinello-Cason7/4/09 13:13

    I agree with Abby--both about not studying what we love (though I've broken this rule so many times) and about the fact that humor doesn't necessarily have to be fun to tell us something about the world around us.

    In my mind, the goal of studying humor is to find out what it does in addition to being funny. Determining what makes something funny seems very personal and difficult. Determining what social commentary is taking place through the vehicle of humor seems more productive and a little easier to do--at least for me.

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  3. Chris Viehman8/4/09 20:34

    I agree with you to an extent. My problem is that a lot (most) of the stuff we have read and watched in this class just doesn't appeal to me or make me laugh. In my eyes, it isn't funny. And like you said, analyzing this already dry material only makes matters worse. Trying to determine why people find this funny, what about it is funny, and how and why the author is using humor as a vehicle is tough when you don't care much for the material in the first place.

    But on that note, we've been exposed to some pretty good stuff, too. For me, that includes comedians like Ralphie May, Eddie Murphy, and Chris Rock. (I love the edgier, unapologetic personalities). And turning a critical eye to them only makes me appreciate them more- in a sense, it helps me understand their true talent and genius. Comparing them to the less-funny material we've covered makes them seem even more remarkable.

    Basically, from my point of view, I have to wade through the junk to find the gems. But the gems shine even brighter than before.

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