Comedy

In response to Emily's point about the role of race in comedy, I think it is important to remember the concept of satire and parody: “[P]arody implied a certain familiarity with the originals.” (The Wage of Whiteness)

Those who attended the History of Minstrelsy show two weeks ago would recall how the performers tied Minstrelsy to the current comedians we see on tv. With a comedian representing any minority on Comedy Central, they tend to portray a stereotyped image of the race they represent: accents, mannerisms, and topics. This charicatured state resembles minstrelsy: “the ‘distance’ provided by blackface made for social and cultural criticism able to present ‘truths' … which would have been profoundly troubling or socially dangerous if presented or takin in serious form.” (The Wages of Whiteness p. 126)

The audience who knows the "original" may laugh at the exaggerations or absurdities, and any seriousness is avoided by the fact that the comedian is very much "in costume." However, when those who are not fully familiar with the original are laughing, what's funny? Some say Dave Chappelle took leave because someone in the audience was laughing too loud for the wrong reasons. Bamboozled definitely makes this point. When you consider who is in control of the media, cable, and film industries and what consumer market they are targeting, it makes you wonder what is being laughed at, for what reasons, and whether it can really be called comedy.