Well, maybe I’m easily amused, but I probably would at least smile at a well-told story about an earplug that couldn’t be extracted. The key word is “well-told”. A good comedian can make the most pedestrian topic hilarious.
If I told you that male underwear discomfort isn’t a funny topic to me, what would you think? Of course, I have the right to believe what I want to believe. But if I’ve never heard a skillful comic talk about his underwear discomfort, wouldn’t it be smarter for me to withhold judgment rather than declaring that this topic is naturally or inherently unfunny? I probably wouldn’t laugh at some random person on the street talking about his underwear problems. Just like I probably wouldn’t laugh at some random woman talking about her tampon. But a funny person’s story-telling is a different matter, though.
This is obviously true, and a fair point. The funniest people I know IRL are certainly funny in a way that has little or nothing to do with subject matter. They’re funny even when talking about… well, nothing, or nothing in particular. Just random, everyday stuff.
Conversely, it’s also true that interesting or uncomfortable subject matter won’t get you anywhere if you’re not funny. Not everyone can tell a good dead baby joke. You have to have a certain knack for it.
I don’t laugh at most people when they talk about their recent cancer diagnosis. But when Tig Notaro does it, it’s hilarious.
(BTW, for anyone who’s not familiar with that clip: It’s from a much longer set, which is all great, and well worth tracking down.)
I can see arguments for the existence of a social box that women were expected to stay inside of. Over the past few years, it is clear that women have challenged and rejected that box. With Orange is the New Black, Transparent, Girls, Kimmy Schmidt, Shumer’s show and movie, Sam Bee’s Full Frontal, etc - we’re in an emerging Golden Era for entertainment built from a female gaze.
It’s interesting and funny and not necessarily me - Shumer’s Last Fuckable Day is one of many shots punching up at the dominant social mores. But damn it’s well-crafted and thoughtful.
This conversation has literally made me change my behavior on this now. From now on, when people talk about their periods, I’ll listen. I’ll stick around for the punchline.
