A joke is anything that has humorous intentions. In this way
jokes are humor. Jokes are a great and powerful tool that can be used to
make people laugh and feel great about themselves. They are great when
heard at large comedy clubs from famous comedians or when sitting at the
dinner table with your family. But like most things that can be used
for good, jokes have a dark side. Although most of the jokes we tell and
hear on a regular basis are said with good intentions, certain kinds of
jokes can inspire prejudice and hate. These are primarily those jokes
that target a certain group in a negative way; these jokes include
blonde jokes, sexist jokes, gay jokes, black jokes, and really any joke
that targets a certain race of people. These sorts of jokes are rampant
in modern-day society and are harmful to the groups they are about.
Almost every living person has partaken in the ritual of telling jokes that are prejudice to some group, whether it be enjoying them 'innocently' or sharing them with others. One of the greatest problems with these sorts of jokes is that people do not realize that they are causing detriment to the group that is included in the joke. They seem to be playful and fun, but if you really examine what is behind these jokes they lose their appeal. If any of these prejudice jokes were reversed and told about the opposite group, would they be funny at all? For example "What do you do if your dishwasher stops working? You hit her." Some people find this funny because they have sexist beliefs about women that are fueled by this kind of joke. If you replace "her" in the punch line with "he," the joke loses all of its appeal. So even though they seem harmless, they are fueled by and in turn fuel prejudice beliefs.
A study performed in 2007 on 73 male undergraduate students showed that the use and propagation of sexist humor can actually promote sexist behavior. In this case humor is used as a weapon rather than to incite joy. Moreover, the study found that by using humor, something fun and socially agreeable, sexism itself became more tolerable and socially agreeable. The results of this study are almost shocking because we usually think of jokes as having no control over society at all, we see them as just entertainment. But just like everything we hear and see, they can have a very large and negative effect on how we treat an entire group of people.
It is evident that jokes and humor must be treated like all things and should be used for good, and prejudice/hate should not be acceptable; even in joke form. These jokes have become such a large part of our way of thinking and our entertainment that they are here to stay for now. But we can still combat the feelings and effects created by the history behind these jokes to take away their power.
Almost every living person has partaken in the ritual of telling jokes that are prejudice to some group, whether it be enjoying them 'innocently' or sharing them with others. One of the greatest problems with these sorts of jokes is that people do not realize that they are causing detriment to the group that is included in the joke. They seem to be playful and fun, but if you really examine what is behind these jokes they lose their appeal. If any of these prejudice jokes were reversed and told about the opposite group, would they be funny at all? For example "What do you do if your dishwasher stops working? You hit her." Some people find this funny because they have sexist beliefs about women that are fueled by this kind of joke. If you replace "her" in the punch line with "he," the joke loses all of its appeal. So even though they seem harmless, they are fueled by and in turn fuel prejudice beliefs.
A study performed in 2007 on 73 male undergraduate students showed that the use and propagation of sexist humor can actually promote sexist behavior. In this case humor is used as a weapon rather than to incite joy. Moreover, the study found that by using humor, something fun and socially agreeable, sexism itself became more tolerable and socially agreeable. The results of this study are almost shocking because we usually think of jokes as having no control over society at all, we see them as just entertainment. But just like everything we hear and see, they can have a very large and negative effect on how we treat an entire group of people.
It is evident that jokes and humor must be treated like all things and should be used for good, and prejudice/hate should not be acceptable; even in joke form. These jokes have become such a large part of our way of thinking and our entertainment that they are here to stay for now. But we can still combat the feelings and effects created by the history behind these jokes to take away their power.
