The Evolution Of Comedic Self Representation Of Minorities Essay

The famous episode from Seinfeld, “The Soup Nazi”, is loved and viewed by many. In this episode, both George Costanza (Jay Scott Greenspan) and Jerry Seinfeld (Jerry Seinfeld) go to a restaurant that supposedly has the “best soup in the city”, according to the locals. However, everyone calls the owner of the soup restaurant “The Soup Nazi” because of his hard, cold personality and his ability to refuse service to anyone who annoys him. The episode comically portrays the fear which “The Soup Nazi” induces on his customers and the willingness of his customers to come back just because his soup is so delicious (http://www.ign.com/articles/2014/07/04/the-top-10-seinfeld-episodes?page=2). This episode represents only a small sample of the countless comical and satirical works written by Larry David, the writer of the television series, Seinfeld. Larry David is a comedian as well as a satirist. He is in many Saturday Night Live (SNL) skits as Bernie Sanders, and was the co-creator of the television series, Curb Your Enthusiasm. A common theme throughout his works is his ability to take everyday problems and blow them out of proportion. Larry David practices many techniques in his satirical pieces that explore ideas of race and gender in order to bring across a message to society and entertainment to viewers.

As something people tend to hold the most dearly, culture can be a sensitive topic to discuss and engage in. Often, it is made even more difficult due to issues of the past and the way different cultures influence one another. Moreover, the concepts of cultural assimilation and mainstreaming have brought light on problems regarding the treatment of minority cultures within American culture, specifically with the use of stereotyped imagery and hijacking outside cultural ideas. The issues of cultural stereotyping and assimilation, as seen in South Park, have garnered attention due to the nature of offence and its subjective nature.

Chapter 25, "Mr. Ara," begins with the gathering of neighborhood boys in front of Ara's market. August Gottlieb, Ulysses, Lionel, and other youths of Ithaca have just taken part in the theft of an apricot from Old Henderson's tree. Standing in front of the store, the boys revere the apricot as an item of sacrament. August, the boy who physically plucks it, is held in high regard for his bravery and efficiency. Although the apricot is hard and green and far from ripe, it has a deeper meaning to the young boys of the small town. The fruit is an item obtained in spite of the possible danger of getting caught by Henderson; it is considered an extremely well earned keepsake. The boys

The Cosby Show declared positive attributes to the black stereotype in opposed to the black sitcoms that came before it. Although the success of The Cosby Show dispelled negative perceptions of the black community the initial idea was thrown, which contributes to racial segregation in American at that time during the 80’s. However, the typical black family perception did change as a result of ‘The Cosby Show’ and opened the doors for many comedians and sitcoms to come. ‘The

Dave Chappelle was the king of comedy. He had his own show on Comedy Central, did many stand ups and guest starred in many SNL skits. His works were filled heavily with racial satire with the intent to attack and expose racism throughout America in a non-threatening way. Dave Chappelle’s masterful delivery and extreme horatian satirical techniques allow for top-shelf entertainment with an underlying, thought provoking message.

The show Black-ish displays political humor and satire by using concepts such as confrontation, and discursive integration. Throughout this paper, I will be explaining how Black-ish displays these concepts, as well as proving that this text can be considered politically humorous and satirical. I will be taking examples from the texts Entertaining the Citizen and the article Let Us Infotain You, as well as the show Black-ish itself to help clearly provide evidence that shows that show Black-ish contains satire.

Since its start, the television industry has been criticized for perpetuating myths and stereotypes about African-Americans through characterizations, story lines, and plots. The situation comedy has been the area that has seemed to draw the most criticism, analysis, and disapproval for stereotyping. From Sanford and Son and The Jefferson’s in the 1970s to The Cosby Show (1984) and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air in the 1990s, sitcoms featuring black casts and characters have always been controversial. However, their significance upon our American culture cannot be disregarded. During the 1950s and 1960s, 97% of the families were Caucasian. In the first five years of the

I could not agree more! I believe that the reason why Black stand-up comedians make jokes about people of their own race is because in the world of comedy, finding ways to relate to their own people means that they are thriving, especially when Black people in their audience have great sense of humors. From Bert Williams (also known as "Blackface") to Eddie Murphy and from Richard Pryor to Dave Chappelle...each one of them laughed with their audience, not at them. The same goes for Hispanic comedians such as George Lopez, Cheech Marin, Carlos Mencia and Angela Johnson. Bert Williams was one of the first Black comedians; his intent was to educate his predominantly white audience on his experiences as a Black man through comedy. He

In a technological and social sphere of cynics, commentators, and subjectivity, cult comedy introduces itself to the user as a category of media entertainment. Evidence indicates that through its encoded text, television allows the digitalized ability to inspire, fortify, and modify its viewership’s perceptions. Television has demonstrated characteristics found in both the instrumentalist and determinist technological school of thought, as well as an established staple in the average home. However, the plots and narratives in the television show South Park instigate a widespread discourse about relevant and representative content, which is far more influential than the images on the screen. In concentrating on the intimate stories of four male

Trevor Noah, a mixed race South African born during the apartheid uses comedy to reveal his perspective on American culture. Throughout his time in America he has encountered different situations revolving around race and social status. For Trevor, home was not as functional as a young child. During his stand-up act, he states how he was “born a crime,” his father was a white man from Switzerland and his mother was black from South Africa. As, a biracial child within his “South African”?

This essay is going to discuss about racism in comedy and in addition to that it is also going to look at whether it is acceptable for comedians to use certain racial words for example when black comedians use the word “Nigger”. Also it is going to look at how different audience put up with this kind of material, but first of all it is going to look at the actual word itself and where in the blue marble that we call earth it originated from.

Here is the history of slaves performing entertainment for the household as a way to remain in high favor with the slave masters and owners. This concept has most definitely trickle down into our modern 21st-century society. The prevalence of black comedians in our community shows that this is true. Another result of this is the idea that many African-American males and females feel like they need to be the comic relief in the classroom, the workplace, and etc. This because the white people are okay with laughing at a black person, but not okay with having a black person as their equal in the workplace or in the classroom. This is demonstrated by comedians such is Dave Chappelle, Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence and JJ from Good Times.

The world is composed of millions of people that come from different locations, are part of different races, believe in different religions, and have developed different cultures to those of everyone else. Over the course of human history, the differences that we have developed have played an enormous role in dividing us. Perhaps the chief problem that has plagued society in the past, and continues to do so to this day, is the idea that one’s race is superior to that of others; in other words: racism. Racism has led to the discrimination, oppression, and deaths of countless numbers of people. In the present, racism is often closely associated with stereotypes. In today’s society, being stereotypical often gets you the criticism that “you

Manbearpig: Half Man, Half Bear, Half Pig, but All Global Warming? South Park is a popular animated comedy series written by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. While the episodes of South Park are always humorous on the surface, each show usually has a deeper, much more profound meaning and moral. One episode of South Park entitled Manbearpig, named after the monster in the episode, has a particularly potent deeper meaning. On the surface, the episode pokes fun at monster stories, politics, and specifically Al Gore. Deeper down, however, this monster story can be read as a national allegory alluding to the dangers of global warming, the problems with the politics behind global warming, and the eventual doom we will all face

Today, comedy news shows are becoming progressively more popular, and in so, becoming a new source of information – which may, or may not, be a positive consequence. Most comedians twist the truth in order to connect to people and make them laugh. The article “A Serious Business: What Can Comedy Do?” suggests some comedians “use logic to make painful things make sense” (O’Hara 108). Satirical comedy acts as a relief mechanism in that it comforts people that may be wary about a certain subject, especially in the realm of politics. Similarly, Peter McGraw and Joel Warner discuss how comedy can act as a coping mechanism. The authors conclude that “activists all over the world have been using comedy as a form of political protest” (McGraw & Warner 147). Iain Ellis writes about how political satirists do more than just deliver jokes, they use satire “to expose, ridicule, and–implicitly–call for action and change” (Ellis 152). Ellis contends that comedy can make a difference by its constant presence in our daily lives. Socrates, Plato, and even shows like South Park believe that humor is a way to persuade others. One of the most effective expressions of humor to affect social change has been the inclusion of satire. Although humor often provides people a welcome escape from the burdens of their daily lives, the satirical comedy deconstructs social issues in various ways as a means to persuade the