The only two moments where Ralphie May had me laughing were when he said "Pope-pourri" (I love puns) and when he was making fun of Open Water (because I always thought that movie looked like a snooze-fest). However, I think his routine has comedic merit in that he forced insiders in the audience to become--albeit collectively--outsiders; part of our discussion on what makes something funny regularly centers around the notion that insiders are able to "get" and laugh at the joke. Ralphie May, on the other hand, is able to construct the Other as ourselves. Let me explain.
Usually literary critics assert that we cannot construct someone outside of ourselves, for our discourse and perceptions ultimately are our constructions--they mirror us. I think May comes close in this construction, though, because he attributes the construction to someone on the outside; accordingly, the "we" [traditionally a Caucasian, Western "we" ] sees "norkeling" and "cuba diving" as abnormal activities of "the Other." Yes, when he describes his experience in the movie theatre, some of his racially-charged material is indeed offensive (to me at least). At the same time, when he quotes the couple's commentary from behind him, it allows his audience to see how [traditionally Caucasian] mass culture can be viewed from the outside: A movie about a newly married couple floating around in the water for 2 hours seems absurd. And most movie-goers and film critics acclaim the film for its merits, which, on some level, seems additionally absurd.
This We/Other inversion happens again with the Pope story. I'm not Catholic...I'm not even religious. However, Western culture ingrains in us, if not an appreciation, at least a level of respect for most religious figureheads and traditions. When the Pope died, I watched the news coverage. I thought those who paid respects did so out of spiritual reverence. May, however, positions Western audiences as outsiders. The Catholic Church becomes symbolically equivalent to a sports event--foam fingers and all. We begin to see ourselves as an Other, as a commodity-fixated "mass" (bad pun).
As such, though May's jokes are politically incorrect, he seems to point out that political incorrectness is primarily a construction in itself. By stepping outside the self-constructed discourse of what makes sense, what's worth watching, and/or what's socially acceptable--be it religious institutions or the latest film, we find ourselves to be just as "other" as the Other.
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I think you make some really good points in your post. I'm interested to know whether or not it is Ralphie May's intention to force his audience to be outsiders in this sense or if this is just a by-product of the way in which he writes his jokes. We know it is his intention to make people feel uncomfortable about laughing because he even says so in his routine. He claims that he does this just because it is funny to him, but if he is actively trying to force the audience to acknowledge these concepts, then he is a much more worthwhile performer.
ReplyDeleteI think that this is an excellent point and, like Zachary says above, if he's conscious of this accomplishment, that's certainly a lofty goal. I wonder how his "fat" jokes fit into this scheme. He's obviously trying to make his mockery of the "other" a little less insensitive (or at least equally insensitive with the way he treats himself) by also mocking his own in-group. However, I'm not sure how the audience is supposed to take these jokes.
ReplyDeleteMay's "fat" joke may well be his concession....he knows that people are thinking it and heads it off before it can become an issue. Think about the number of heavy women who are hired for "front office" jobs--hostess, receptionist--not many, but I'm sure that when folks told them they had hired someone else, the reason wasn't how they looked. He's the perfect insider to tell the politically incorrect jokes that others tell from the outside.
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