Please read this incredible article by hero Margaret Cho. Two quotes from it:
“I fly my flag of self-esteem for all those who have been told they were ugly and fat and hurt and shamed and violated and abused for the way they look and told time and time again that they were ‘different’ and therefore unlovable. Come to me and I will tell you and show you how beautiful and loved you are and you will see it and feel it and know it and then look in the mirror and truly believe it. If you are offended by my anger and my might at defending my borders and my people you do not deserve entry into my beloved and magnificent country.”
“We deserve beauty, love, respect, admiration, kindness and compassion. If we don’t get it, there will be hell to pay.”
An underrepresented cultural conversation, I think, is how important comedians are to sustaining and improving society. Obviously not all of them; Dane Cook… I mean, watch him perform, I guess, but bring a friggin book! Jim Carrey, I actually find that you’ve blossomed into an amazing serious actor, and I admit that Ace Ventura Pet Detective was my favorite movie when I was 13, and I personally get an abundance of satisfaction out of poop and body-part jokes (which might be a part of me staying sane) but that’s not exactly the kind of critical cultural role I’m talking about.
I digress. There is a reason why the court jester, back in the day, was a) the only one allowed to mock the king and b) sometimes killed. Because comedians and jesters work from a level that is beyond what is acceptable for everyone else. It’s their definition and their allowance. And that they are sometimes silenced should tell us something about their potential power. They are subversive in the unique-est of ways, using humor to soften hearts and minds thus opening folks to issues they might not otherwise be open to, like how much of a dick the king is. Now, what are we going to do with the consciousness they potentially give us? That’s the question and the charge.
While I’m at it, watch this, if you haven’t already:
Another thing I think about a lot is how subversive it is for women, in general, to be funny. To be funny necessarily means to be assertive and loud and smart. Not always physically loud, but loud with one’s existence– a determination to take up some part of one’s own space with one’s mind. That being said, I have a soft spot in my heart for women’s physical comedy/humor ala Amy Sedaris, Kristen Wiig, Gilda Radner, Amy Poehler and my best friend Courtney Bartlett… come to think of it, all of my best woman/female-identified friends are bastions of hilarity. Ask anyone.
For a culturally conditioned woman to make oneself ugly for the sake of a laugh, or to use her body in a huge and obvious and contorted and ridiculous way, is subversive, even if the content isn’t. Precisely because we are supposed to be so small, contained, clean, sexy (and virginy too, you big oppressive false dichotomy dicks), and quiet (all metaphorically and literally.) Bottom line: women aren’t supposed to take up their own space. If you’re funny, you have to take up, to reclaim, at least some of it, whether mind/intelligence, body, or both and more.
So do you hate yourself? Your body? Do you degrade yourself unwittingly, degrade your body and mind? I love you and I’m here for you. It’s okay. It’s a struggle, one worth fighting, which I know from an unfortunate amount of personal experience. Keep fighting. Let’s take care of each other. “We deserve beauty, love, respect, admiration, kindness and compassion. If we don’t get it, there will be hell to pay.”
Why don’t we all do ourselves a favor and watch all of three seasons of Strangers With Candy (Amy Sedaris, Stephen Colbert) for free on Netflix and, I think, Hulu. And also let’s all get copies of all of Margaret Cho’s revolutionary stand-up comedy compilations.
I’ve come across a lot of people/commentary that says women can’t be funny. Hey, guess what? That’s nothing but bullshit penis-farting. Men, be allies, call it out. Women, continue onward in your awesomeness. Folks who fall on other parts of the gender spectrum, explode the conversation gloriously and to your liking.
"Pee on me"
I love my male comedians too, don’t get me wrong. John Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and George Carlin are all personal heroes of mine. Gender-fucker Eddie Izzard just blows everyone’s balls to the wall. But that’s another post, if I get to it. Are you bored right now? Do yourself another favor and watch vintage George Carlin on youtube. Talk about subverting the shit out of things! He was the master (at least, in the men’s realm. Margaret Cho definitely stands right there next to him.)
I, for one, fancy myself a hilarious lady. Do you know how funny I am? Maybe I will tell you about it some day. All in all, I’m really awesome across pretty much every realm that a person can be awesome. There’s no way around it. How about you? Why don’t you leave a comment telling me how amazing and hilarious and smart you are.
I leave you with this little note from my temporary Thailand home, which I consider completely related to musings on comedy: I have to believe that the point of life is love, even if I’m wrong. If I don’t throw my entire self into believing this, I will go insane. Join me.
For realz girl! sing it loud!