b'T3 Journal - Student Writing in Drama, University of Exeter 2020-21 Rebecca Taylor How is Feminist Laughter Operating Withinproblem. The audience laughs (00:36:30). Instead of usingselecting your laughters target carefully is important as it Contemporary Performance?humour to dismantle her identity, here she uses humour tocommunicates your values (Chattoo and Feldman, 2020: affirm it, asserting to the audience that in a situation where148). Gadsby negatively targets a successful man who youre told youre being overly emotional - a situation manyrepresents an institution with arguably misogynistic roots Dissertation Extracts women experience - the accuser is in fact the problem.and who slept with an under-age girl, communicating fem-The ideology that women are more emotional than meninist values. Hierarchy is subverted in comedy when it is Rebecca Tayloris a prominent (and inaccurate) belief in Western culture.challenged (Bing, 2004: 24), and the laughter here encour-This is an issue for women because emotionality in West- ages a disparaging re-evaluation of Picasso to highlight his ern culture has been linked to a lack of rationality (Bres- misogyny. coll, 2016: 415 & 418). Comedy is a place where people can assert their cultural identity (Krefting, 2014: 13, ChattooGadsby uses laughter to reciprocate mens conduct. Near Laughter is a feminist issue. It is an act which has therecating jokes because this sense of humour is what weand Feldman, 2020: 8). Gadsby, in this moment, asserts herthe start of the performance, Gadsby discusses the way ability to reinforce and dismantle oppressive structures,have learnt to be socially acceptable and beneficial.identity as a woman who feels, not backing away from thismen berate women who dont laugh at jokes which are and which comes from bodies existing within contextsAston contends that in order to avoid this eventuality,stereotype but instead comedically expressing that anyoneoffensive to them: you need to lighten up ( 00:16:34). of misogyny, transphobia, racism, violence, privilege andfeminists can either stop attending the theatre, or createwho sees this characteristic as an issue, is the issue. ThisAfter discussing the eventuality of being mistakenly called pleasure (Frey, 2021a: 7). Feminist laughter is not a newtheatre which realises the pleasure/s and desires/s of thehumour is inclusive in that it attacks an attitude rather thansir, Gadsby entertains the idea of being perceived as a concept, it has long been used by feminists for politicalfemale/feminist spectator (Aston, 1996: 60). In light ofa social group (Bing, 2004: 28), meaning it doesnt alien- man. She says, enthused: dont apologise [] Im top-shelf action and as a mechanism of self-care (Frey, 2021a: 7).this, I discuss what happens when women/feminists areate potential sympathisers, and instead only targets thosenormal, king of the humans - Im a straight white man the invited to reclaim laughter within the context of contem- with this ideology. Bing asserts that self-affirming humouraudience applauds, she continues: Im about to get good Aston writes that women attending the theatre often findporary performance. When feminists laugh, not in spite ofwithin feminist comedy emphasises the female experienceservice for no fucking effort (00:24:49). To retreat from themselves laughing in spite of themselves (Aston, 1996:themselves, but at spite itself, what does this do? Leadingas important (Bing, 2004: 27). The laughter that arises herethis exploration, Gadsby good-naturedly states: just jokes 60). She addresses the idea of an implied spectator: oneme to my question: how is feminist laughter operatingsides with Gadsby and other women who have receivedthough, clearly just jokes [] do you know why I love [] imagined by a writer or director when a theatre piece iswithin contemporary performance? this comment, affirming those who are sensitive and ridi- telling jokes about, straight white men? Because theyre written or crafted, and a real spectator: the actual personculing those who criticise them.such good sports she says fondly, earning her a laugh with who sees the performance (Aston, 1996: 59). The im- Nanette by Hannah Gadsbyher incongruent statement (00:25:30). plied spectator tends to be a man, and consequently, theIn not laughing down at herself, or others that identify real female spectators find themselves in a compromisedHannah Gadsby: Nanette (Nanette), was performed and filmedwith her, Gadsby instead laughs up, targeting individualsHere, Gadsby employs the tactic Sorensen terms polit-position: the female spectator whose reactions are theat- in the Sydney Opera House. It was released on Netflix inand institutions with power. For example, Gadsby laughsical jiu-jitsu (Sorensen, 2008: 183), using an oppressors rically competent generally finds herself in the position2018, where I watched it in 2021. In this performance,up at modern art and Picasso: I hate him, but you cant,force against them. Stand-up comedians have been known of laughing in spite of herself. Where is the pleasure inGadsby addresses her experiences of being a comedian,Cubism she states, frustrated. Sarcastically, she continues:to dismiss harmful comments as a joke (Rappaport and finding yourself the object of the joke? (Aston, 1996: 60).and the trauma she has experienced as a lesbian.if you ruin Cubism, then civilisation as we know it willQuilty-Dunn, 2020: 477) and because stand-up is a field Reading Astons essay twenty years later, I realised that thiscrumble, she dramatically lengthens the word crumblethat has historically been dominated by men (Chattoo and still happens in contemporary performance.In Nanette, Gadsby overtly refuses to laugh in spite ofto highlight her view that Cubism isnt important. SheFeldman, 2020: 28), this is commonly enacted by them. herself, explaining that she used to self-deprecate in ordercontinues: arent we grateful in this room, that we live in aAfter performing a speech about mens lives being easi-While discussing this phenomenon with a friend, he askedto feel heard (2018: 00:17:40). Instead, Gadsby createspost-Cubism world? Isnt that the first thing we all write iner, and potentially irritating the male audience members, me: why do women laugh at something if it isnt funny?laughter through a narrative that backs herself. For exam- our gratitude journals?. She earns laughter with this mock- Gadsby removes the male audience members autonomy to Rebecca Krefting provides an answer in All Joking Asideple, she tells a story about when a man told her not to takeing (00:50:35). Once Gadsby has engaged the audience inbe annoyed by saying she is only joking, thus challenging - from youth we learn that there are economic and socialanti-depressants because shes an artist and should feel.laughing at him, she explains that as a married forty-two- them to face the tactic men have used repeatedly to get advantages to identifying with those in power because suchShe quotes herself: what do you honestly think?, her toneyear-old, Picasso fucked an under-age girl (00:53:10).away with saying offensive things about women/minority perspectives bear the promise of material and culturalis in infuriated amazement as she addresses the man ingroups. Laughter here puts men in the position of women: capital (Krefting, 2014: 7). This influences what - andher memory, that creativity means you must suffer? []There is an incongruency theory to laughter, which sug- to be amused she must discount and disvalue her own whose - humour succeeds. Krefting asserts that, as womenjust so you can enjoy it? Fuck you, mate. She then mimicsgests: to feel amused enough to laugh, the audience mustexperience (Merrill, 1988: 279). It forces men to make the are a minority group, buying into a womans point of viewhim, her tone adopting the tone of amused surprise thatbe able to recognize both the status quo and the incon- difficult choice between laughing in spite of themselves is less lucrative (Krefting, 2014: 7). As a woman, by notmen often take in order to undermine a womans anger:gruent, unexpected reinterpretation of the status quo thator placing themselves outside of the community of the laughing when a self-deprecating joke appears in a publicno need to be so sensitive (00:35:05-00:35:40) he says,comedy offers (Chattoo and Feldman, 2020: 25). Applyingaudience in refusal; this is revenge. Whilst discussing these setting you identify with the ideals of a minority group andholding his hands up defensively. Gadsby then address- this logic, the ideology that Picassos work is unessential isfunctions of laughter which laugh up and target men, separate yourself from the advantaged perspective. Hanich,es the audience: when somebody tells me to stop beingthe status quo and therefore Gadsbys exaggerated por- some challenging questions come to mind. For exam-in his sociological study on laughter in cinemas, assertsso sensitive, you know what? I feel a little bit like a nosetrayal of its importance earns laughter in its incongruency;ple: is denying male subjectivity the only way to posit a that by refusing to laugh you place yourself outside of thebeing lectured by a fart. She surveys her audience, herthis suggests that the idea of Picassos work being deemedfemale spectator? (Gilbert, 1997: 325), or: have feminists community (Hanich, 2018: 213). Women laugh at self-dep- face scrunched up in distaste, before she stresses: not theimportant is funny, undermining it. As discussed earlier,discovered humor only to complain about men? (Bing, 48 49'