We listened to several audio clips of various comedy shows to see how variations in language can be used to create humor and deliver punch-lines. Most of the comedians would narrate their story in the standard variety of the language, whether that was Pidgin or English. To create humor or deliver a punch-line, the comedians would code-switch to another accent.
I found the use of ethnic jokes to be acceptable, since the context was comedy. Also, since the comedians were of the ethnic group that was being profiled, it made the joke more acceptable. Some individuals might still find certain jokes to be offensive, but it ultimately depends on the mindset of the person who is listening to the joke. The point of the jokes were not to ridicule or degrade any particular ethnic group, but rather to make light of some of the standard stereotypes that exist for that group.
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The very first time I heard comedians used code-switch to create humors. I think everthing happened in certain context. Take Hawaii'i as an example, because Hawaii is a multi-cultural place, comedians here could use different ethic group to bring audience laughters. I do not think comedians in mainland can come out of this kind of jokes.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with JMW's opinion that ethic jokes is accpetable. I do not think it is necessary to feel offensive when your ethic groups are made fun of. Becaue in certain ethic, we have certain sterotype.
Humor is a perfect medium through which people of different backgrounds can come together and release their worries of their daily lives and enjoy life. Often times, comedians use various accents to signify someone of a specific ethnicity. A dialogue can then be constructed with the use of accents and tone of voice. This type of code-switching may not be acceptable if used in the outside world, but on stage, a comedian often holds the right to cross many social boundaries. Different rules apply when it comes to humor, and so speech in humor has its own niche when it comes to language.
ReplyDeleteThe video clips shown were interesting to me in the fact that I never analyzed voices and accents until someone posed the question whether or not that person had an accent. That is a difficult question to think about because I believe it is your own point of view. As comedians provide humor, they usually use accents that denote that certain race to the audience. Accents are connected to people and races. Racial jokes are generally used in comedic performances. When it came to racial comedy, I found it acceptable to use certain jokes in that context. Many people find it funny while others find it degrading, but that is how comedy is.
ReplyDeleteWhile stereotypical remarks about specific ethnic groups may be offensive in a serious conversation between a group of people, comments made in the context of a comedy show by a comedian are simply used to extract the truth and humor from ethnic stereotypes. Even though comedians do not mean any harm by telling ethnic jokes, there will always be audience members who will become upset over the comments. It is important to remember however that if there were not any truth to the stereotypical jokes comedians employ in their performances, it is likely that an audience would not find them very funny. The reason people laugh when they hear familiar ethnic jokes is because at some point, they’ve found the stereotype within the jokes to be true.
ReplyDeleteAs the guest speaker started asking us if the different people on the video clips had accents, I realized that I could point out if they had an accent but struggled to determine what specific accent they had. It was very interesting listening to the audio clips of Bumatai, Augie T., and the song of Mr. Sun Cho Lee. As comedians provide their audience with humor, code switching is needed. The jokes wouldn’t be funny if comedians didn’t express their jokes by changing their accents. To me, the ethnic jokes that were told are more acceptable in the comedy world. I think it also depends on how open the person feels towards these ethnic jokes. Some people might find it offensive while others find it acceptable. I like the ending three lines in the song Mr. Sun Cho Lee where it explains how we all tease the other race but how amazing it is that we can all live in the same place. This is so true about the people of Hawaii.
ReplyDeleteDuring our guest lecture, we were presented with several video clips. After watching each video clip, Professor Toshiaki Furukawa asked us if the individuals had an accent. I was able to identify that the individuals had an accent, but it was difficult to distinguish what particular accent he or she had. I think that each and every one of us has an accent, even in the form of standard English. A person's speech in standardized English may have a British, Australian, Jamaican, and even a local accent. I think it all depends on a person because accents are a variation based on sounds. We also listened to several audio clips where comedians delivered jokes/punch lines through the form of code-switching. They changed their tones of voice and used certain accents. I found these ethnic jokes to be acceptable because these comedians were of that ethnic group that was being accounted for. Being from Hawaii, I feel that the ethnic jokes to be even more acceptable because Hawaii has a diversity of ethnicities and cultures. But, it really comes down to the person and if whether he or she takes it offensively.
ReplyDeleteThe comedians that use stereotypes in their jokes are not trying to insult a culture but rather to make fun of it. Comedians like Augie T carefully choose which culture or race he wants to make fun of. Since he lives and performs in Hawaii, he chooses to make fun of Filipinos mainly because it would not make sense to tell jokes about African Americans where there are none in the audience. Also, he is not black himself which might make the audience think he is racist and out of place to tell a joke about them. Augie T tells stereotypical jokes about Filipinos all the time. For example, he told the audience about how a dog was taken at the golf course. The audience immediately laughs because they already have an idea about what the joke is about. If Augie were to say something inferring that Filipinos eat dirt, the audience would probably not accept the joke as being funny.
ReplyDeleteI think that comedy is a great stage to break down social barriers. This is because laughter is universal. Everyone loves to laugh. Its perfectly fine to poke fun at people if its light hearted, none of the comedy that we witnessed was in bad taste or mean spirited. So, I found it to be very intertaining.
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