Is dark humor all dark, or is what we make of it?
Many comedians have been the target of criticism and hate due to their approach to stand-up and their use of dark humor. There is an array of factors that contribute towards this. Judgemental context and guilt? Lack of comprehension? Little empathy and knowledge of the person behind the jokes? No critical thinking around humor? Nonetheless, it’s worth giving the topic some thought.
To my first point, we live in an overly-sensitive easily-offended cancel culture, where we are more conscious of political climates, vulnerable minorities, and feelings around us. Put all this together and we’ve got ourselves a cocktail that makes us laugh less by the day, let alone at anything that resembles dark humor. Everyone has the right to not like a joke, or to feel offended by it. However, that does not necessarily mean the joke is inherently bad or offensive, and this is something we should all be able to recognise. People’s personal feelings aren’t a clear reflection of reality. In fact, in this day and age it is almost impossible that any one person isn’t offended by something that is said.
Furthermore, some people have the feeling that laughing at dark humor is endorsing a negative underlying sentiment or point of view. But who makes this decision? Shouldn’t it be only the person who laughs at the joke? For some people laughing at anything that is even remotely related to hard topics means they are not sensible to them, and are okay with a society that does not condemn them. However, for others, laughing at a joke which contextualises itself within these big issues does not mean they are a person who is not educated, aware, or worried. It’s quite the opposite. Some people are okay with laughing at death and illness. This doesn’t mean they’re living in a far away land where they don’t recognise the seriousness of the topics. This probably means they’ve been so close to them that they know you need to create some lightness around them to survive.
Another point worth mentioning, (which actually contributes to the feeling of guilt), is the lack of comprehension or understanding. Ricky Gervais is exceptional at explaining why it is okay to laugh at dark humor. “People get offended when they mistake the subject of a joke by the actual target. And they’re not necessarily the same thing. You can make jokes on any subject, it depends on what the joke is”. He has stated this many times on different occasions. Now, the famous Caitlyn Jenner joke is a great example. “It was a joke about a trans person, but the joke had nothing to do with that aspect of her existence” Gervais states. The premise is you can make fun of anything except things that people can’t help. If a joke features a black person, a trans person, or a disabled person, for instance, and it is about their pretension or their ego, then this joke isn’t racist, transphobic or ableist, really, is it? What we can take away from this is that being okay with dark humor is a lot about understanding the true root and intention of the jokes.
Playing a part, side by side, with this lack of comprehension might be the simple fact that sometimes the audience does not empathise or genuinely like the comedian as a person. This influences the interpretation of a joke, which suddenly becomes reflective of the perception of the person who delivers it. People don’t condemn the way a comedian uses dark humor, partially, because they believe that behind it is a man or woman with a good heart who wants to hold a mirror up to society and use some brutal humor to do so. Now, let’s take the example of Louis CK. After allegations of sexual misconduct he lost the credibility to use dark humor, because he was no longer considered sensible or trustworthy. So knowing the person behind the joke plays a huge role in accepting dark humor and finding it funny.
Lastly, in an attempt to sum up the other 30,000 thoughts I have on the topic, there is a lack of critical thinking around dark humor, and the role it can play in culture and society. Whilst I understand some comedy may reinforce questionable stereotypes and attitudes, I also appreciate that they may actually have a positive effect when it comes to examining social norms that are no longer acceptable. Dark humor can have good intention. It can have positive effects and even create change. A great example of this was Ben Carey’s Climate Science Translated videos. The founder of the Utopia Bureau, said “we listen more to jokes than we listen to lectures”. With this, he paired up scientists and comedians that would tell it like it is, no bull****, to make important climate information more visceral, in a way, but also more motivating to act. Humor can attract attention and generate reflection upon truth on different topics, even when it’s ‘dark’.
Kenan Thomson, the Saturday Night Live star, said, in a talk about humor at Cannes Lions Festival “comedians are heroes when it comes to dealing with pain” and “if we laugh over something we are one step closer to healing”. I believe this. Aaron Sachs, historian and author said “Comedy has developed as this great tradition for getting yourself into the frame of mind that will allow you to get through the horror and to try to make things better.” I believe this too. We need it more in a Pandemic than we do when we are having a great day. We need it more when dealing with hurtful taboo topics that aren’t discussed enough than when we’re having a happy Sunday lunch. We need it in pain, sadness, and desperation.
Overall, whilst I understand and respect the fact that humor is subjective and not everyone appreciates the same jokes, I also want to leave a kind reminder that we need to laugh more, even if we are laughing at our own bruises and insecurities or at society’s absurd reality. Let’s remember the subjects of the jokes aren’t always the targets. For some comedians they never are. So let’s try to understand what’s behind them. What can a joke shed some light upon? What can we, as an audience, take away from it? Because laughing is a strong approach when it comes to tackling hard topics that need to be broken down and that are dark with or without jokes.
Criticising society whilst laughing about our worlds flaws and at ourselves, whoever we are (white or black, men or women, young or old, LGBTQAI+ or hetero, right or left, single or married, doesn’t matter) does not mean we are bad people. Laughing at jokes that mention each other should be okay, because we are all a part of reality in equal measure and humor is, in great part, a reflection of the truth we can all relate to somehow.
As a closing thought: If you think comedy can’t serve a bigger purpose, even when it’s brutal, I recommend you dig in.