Research Question: What is the history of women in humor? What changes have women made to succeed in this male dominated field? What makes a successful women comedian? Why do men find women unfunny?
Thesis statement: Everything in life changes and adapts in order to survive. Women have never been accepted in comedy so they have evolved as comedians. Women are now more aggressive and less worried about looking silly, or being judged; because of these things they have strived in what was once a completely male occupation. There is plenty of evidence to show that females have been making major progress in equality within this career. Although the stereotypes of women and their roles in life have made this a struggle, and are obviously still an issue, women continue to fight the unfair claim men have made over the years that they are simply not funny.
Annotated Bibliography:
Stanley , Alessandra . “Who Says Women Aren't Funny?”. Vanity Fair April 2008.
Stanley writes an article that talks about the success women have had in comedy and who these women are. I believe her article shows a lot about how women have changed their acts and their personalities, sometimes making themselves the butt in order to gain acceptance in the world of humor.
Karen, Von Hahn. “Funny Girls”. The Globe.
Von Hahn writes an article that calls into question the statement that women are humorless. She talks about why men find women threatening and other reasons as to why it has been hard for women to be comedians but shows that they have actually done well as comedians.
Hitchens , Christopher . “Why Women Can’t Be Funny”. Vanity Fair.
Hitchens offers the counter-perspective on women having a sense of humor. He talks about why women are not funny and why they are unable to be viewed as funny.
Valenti, Jessica. “Untitled”. The Guardian.
The Guardian is a magazine I keep running into every time I try to find more articles. Valenti really takes a look at the types of female comedians. Mostly feminists and what roles they play in comedy in order to break into the business.
Who Says “Women Aren’t Funny?”. Alessandra Stanley Vanity Fair Aril 2008.
This article was written as a counter to Hitchens article and I think it gives a lot of insight into great female comedians, why men have this opinion of women, and proof that it is changing and why it is changing.
Purdie, Susan. “The Butt: The Third Person”.
The butt is about the positions one plays in a joke- the teller, the audience, and the butt. I believe many females have made themselves the butt of the joke in order to gain success in comedy and have taken the power Purdie talks about into their own hands becoming the teller in many situations without having to be the old butt.
Berger, Arthur. “The Telephone Pole with the Braided Armpits: Ethnic and Racial Jokes and American Society”.
This article talks about how mean and hurtful jokes can be, but it also gives insight in the changes in jokes from history which I think is a major reason why women are now in comedy.
Greer, Germaine. “Beaten to the Punchline”. The Guardian March 2009.
I like Germaine’s article because it offers a woman’s perspective on why women are not funny and why men are just plane better at telling jokes because they do it their whole lives.
Renton, Alex. “If women aren't funny, how come the world's hottest, most controversial comedian is female?”. The Observer March 2006.
This article is actually about Sarah Silverman, a very successful female comedian. I want to use this because it gives an example of what it takes to be a good comedian as a female and why she, and others, are good at it.
Naranjo-Huebel, Linda . "From Peek-a-boo to Sarcasm: Women's Humor as a Means of Both Connection and Resistance ". Studies in Prolife Feminism September 22, 1995
This is an in depth article and majorly based on scientific date which I think give credence to my claim.
Eli , Shaun . "Women ARE Funny (a feminist male comedian's experiences in stand-up comedy)".
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Shaun puts an interesting spin on an article about women in comedy. He is a feminist male and he is also a stand up comic. He has witnessed women succeed and fail in comedy and gives reasons why.
Rubenstein, Jamie . "Why Women Aren’t Funny (Hint: It Has to Do with Men Being Hilarious!)". Barnard University.
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Jamie Rubenstein sounds like a females name but it sounds like a guy wrote it. I want to use it because it shows the complete sexism of some males and why they say women are not funny.
By Wilson, Emily. "Are Men Threatened by Funny Women?". AlterNet .
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Wilson’s article is a very educational reading of why men are threatened by funny women and the roles women play in society.
Summary and So what?
Women are funny. Maybe they used to hold it in because they were expected to be proper or would be in trouble if they were to make jokes. Things have changed over the years and jokes will always change with the people who tell them. Female’s comedy has adapted and been refined for this day and age and I believe this is the reason women have been so successful in comedy lately. Many of the articles I will talk about list many female comedians and what they do to gain popularity in what used to be considered completely male occupations. Though women are still outnumbered they are gaining respect in comedy. As a male I find it is an interest topic to get a man’s point of view on, especially a positive opinion of the female’s ability to be humorous.
This shows how much people and their opinions are changing in order to gain equality in the world today and women have been making strides for years and will continue to do so.
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