(I feel that I should mention my esteemed colleague and 8th best friend Giselle Nejady is sat opposite me attempting to distract me with her breasticles. For the most part it’s working)
Today I’m going to write some clever witticisms about stand up comedy and some social implications it has.
Firstly though, I’d like to talk a little bit about my dog.
She’s on her ‘six monthlies’ at the minute (in heat) and its necessary for her to wear knickers. On my lunch break I bought some 2-3yr old boys briefs with aliens on. She’ll be donning them this week. I hope she doesn’t eat these ones, she ate the ‘I heart ponies’ pair, glutinous bitch.
I’ve listened to a great deal of stand up comedy over the past few years, some of it has made me snort laughing, some of it has made me wish I had something to snort. I’ve noticed patterns immerge in the performances of my peers, namely the nature of the topics chosen for discussion and the way they are presented.
I’d say the favourites amongst these twenty something, jean and t-shirt wearing, XY chromosomes are: normalising rape and glamorising paedophilia. I don’t mean to generalise or be sexist, this is simply an observation. I do love the freedom of the stage and I’m grateful that I don’t live in a totalitarian regime which denies the freedom of speech but haway! Kiddie fiddle jokes? Not cool.
All genres of art (yes I’m referring to stand up as an art) through out the years has pushed the boundaries of what is deemed socially acceptable in efforts to shock the public or touch on the taboo but I doubt there’s anything you can say that Frankie Boyle hasn’t already said so you aren’t shocking anyone. If a comic does offend an audience member then they can fall back “it’s just a joke”: that old chestnut. Really though is that a get out clause? Do we become desensitised to depravity in the ‘real world’? Or are we presenting such un PC ideas in such a manner that we highlight their ridiculousness?
I have met many comedians who are seriously lacking in good interpersonal skills. This got me thinking; is this because, as a comic becomes more accustomed to discussing such debased subjects on stage, the line between what is and isn’t socially acceptable become more blurred?
Since I started writing comedy last year, I have tried to find the funny in almost every avenue in my life, I’m sure this can be annoying and tiresome to those around me. At times I believe I have made inappropriate comments because of my tuned in comedy mind. This is not to say I haven’t put my foot in it prior to stand up, my foot is usually in it. This has made me wonder: Does comedy make you socially clueless? Or do you have to be socially clueless to be a comic?
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