Reading the funny

Felipe Munoz

Women are funny

Essay

Female empowerment has evolved through history, and through women

movements and revolutions, the female sex has been able to obtain
independence and equality in Western society. Female humour, as many other
social aspects, has been victim of prejudices simply because the idea of women
being funny goes against traditional values and the dominant ideology; but
rationality and critical thinking allow women to develop their own sense of
humour and use it as a social survival tool in a patriarchal world.

Humour is one of the most potent, restorative, and valuable tools we have
in Western culture, not only for entertainment but also for defusing tense
situations, and for bringing about social change. The simple fact that women, as
men, are rational, critical individuals capable of developing a unique, distinct
humour is good reason enough to state that women are funny. Female humour
has always be present in history but it has been censored, ignored and
misinterpreted, discouraging women from using humour in public situations in the
same manner that their expression in general has been restricted. Hence,
women are labelled as the unfunny ones in a society in which men have long
decided what officially comprises funniness. When Hitchens argues that women
are not funny because they are too busy daydreaming about the serious matter
of having babies, and that men are funny for the same reason peacocks have big
tails, Hitchens is relying on dubious ancient biological arguments because then
men would probably be too busy fantasizing about their natural male bloodlust to
be thinking of jokes. Traditionally, humour has been associated with
aggressiveness and superiority whereas women are linked with passiveness and
inferiority. Humour, therefore, represents for women the way to express the need
to be taken seriously as an intellectually capable person. A good example of this
is Aristophanes’ Lysistrata. Even though women are not the central focus of this
Ancient Greek play, the fact that Aristophanes takes a woman as the main
character gives women a slight sense of value and importance in society
recognizing their ability of expression and reasoning.

Generally, the role women play in humour tends to be a storyteller role

rather than a joke teller one. Humour functions as a means of communication
and expression rather than a demonstration of superiority or domination. It is a
distinct form of humour characteristic of and arising from women’s experience
that serves different communicative functions associated with that experience.
This situation can be well illustrated by developing a parallel between the two
comic heroines, Sarah Silverman and Margaret Cho, and American stand-up
comedian, George Carlin. In his act Jammin’ in New York, Carlin tends to tell
short, direct, explicit, formulaic jokes making the audience laugh out loud
constantly. On the other hand, Silverman and Cho’s performances are based
more on their characters’ personal experiences, stories, anecdotes, and dreams.
In contrast to Carlin, the women’s performances have long intervals of silence
among the audience and push the boundaries – either being a satirical trickster
or using male humour elements. Hence, female humour establishes a
conversation rather that a simple joke telling sequence, becoming a more
anecdotal, self-deprecatory humour with a different and unique communicative
approach.

Humour, for women, represents a means of association and opposition.

Because of the power associated with the successful use of humour, humour
initiation has become associated with other traditionally masculine
characteristics, such as aggression, dominance, and assertiveness. For a female
to develop into a clown or joker, then, she must violate the behavioural pattern
normally reserved for women. The American television sitcom, I Love Lucy is a
good representation of this behavioural violation of the “good” woman. As
humorist Regina states women can either make trouble or have trouble. In other
words, when they reject their own degradation they are making trouble, and
having trouble is they are simply too busy to care about something. Thus,
women and humour are tied closely to other problematic issues in women’s
history, denying their place in comedy.

Although the idea of women being funny has been traditionally

discouraged through history, they can be equally engaging sources of comedy as
men. Common beliefs, stereotyping and prejudices do not define what an
individual is capable of doing and in this case, women are able to be as funny as
they want. For women, to recognize their own humour is to recognize their
intellectual capability, trying to end the vapid, superficial myth that women aren’t
funny. Society ought to flip and look at the other side of the coin, that of the
female humour.