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the sex post
I have been dwelling on the intersection between sex and comedy for the last week or so, since watching Funny People. I’ve gotten a number of reactions from people in response to my main query: “Why do comedians always seem to focus on sex?”
Here’s the lay of the land. First, we must admit that most Christians have a hard time talking about sex, much less seeing it as something to joke about. Fortunately it seems like more people married about the same time as I are starting to realize that there needs to be space for a light-hearted component to sex. I’m not saying you always need to laugh or make jokes about it, but I am saying that, honestly, sometimes funny stuff happens, and it’s ok to laugh about it.
Now, this isn’t what I was getting at when I asked about comedians joking about sex all the time. If you watch an average stand-up comic, he/she will undoubtedly make jokes about 1) his/her own sexuality, 2) an experience whilst having sex, or 3) his/her desire for sex. Usually this involves random sexual encounters, meaningless partners, and the like. Some of these jokes are quite humorous when you dissect them looking for wires and buzzers and such that build a precise humor machine (things such as irony, incongruity, absurdity, etc.). That is, there are certain things that define humor, and so these jokes meet these specifications; it really has nothing to do with what the joke is about, just how the joke is formulated.
I would contend that some other of these jokes aren’t “technically” humorous, but because they somehow strike a nerve of common experience with many people, they become humorous. Usually these jokes connect in some ways to technical definitions of humor, but when derailed their technical deficiencies are made up for in their “human interest” effect. I think this effect is why so many comedians actually focus their repertoire on sex. Most people are uncomfortable with having a serious conversation about sex because of their disconnectedness with others. This isn’t just a symptom of “postmodernity” or some other philosophical/ontological fad; it’s a problem that’s been around for centuries.
Perhaps you are starting to see the cycle of irony that’s befuddling me. People are disconnected, so they tell a joke that connects them to disconnected people, but in a way that perpetuates their disconnectedness. This is the problem I have with the average sexual humor wielded by most comics.
When I was in high school, I attended a large denominational event that had various sessions throughout the day before the main hoopla of the evening. I very distinctly remember attended a session in which the speaker purported that it was wrong to watch the television show Friends because of their gravitation toward sexual humor. By laughing at these jokes and situations, the speaker delineated, I was consenting to a lifestyle that supported loose relationships, sexual ambition, etc. Here’s the problem. I personally find Friends very funny. There are heaps of other shows somewhat like it that I find equally funny: Seinfeld, 30 Rock, and The Office, just to name a few. All of these shows (some more than others) at one point or another make light of sex.
So here’s where I’m currently stuck. I don’t want to know if you think it’s ok if I laugh at a sex joke or not. That’s, ultimately, your personal opinion. What really interests me is the “why”. What is it about the overall topic of sex that draws so much attention from comics? And, more importantly to me, has humor changed much over the last 2000 years?
Video
This is one of the better/more interesting TED talks I’ve come across. A.J. Jacobs discusses his experiences of living biblically for a year, sharing insights that have come to shape him post-experiment even though he is an agnostic. Though obviously he disagrees with much of the Christian faith, I think his discoveries about how behavior affects mindset are important if not profound. This will be the best 17 minutes of your day.
