Friday, December 21, 2007

PSA: Women Lack Testosterone to be Funny

For all of the women out there who didn't know, I just wanted to bring you up to speed. It's official. A professor said so, based on his very official and well conducted scientific study:
"Professor Shuster believes humour develops from aggression caused by male hormones. He documented the reaction of over 400 individuals to his unicycling antics through the streets of Newcastle upon Tyne."

Are you fucking kidding me? This idiot thinks that unicycling through a town and judging people's reactions is an accurate way to judge whether women can be funny? Clearly the concepts of intellectual humor, and the scientific method, escape him.

And what does aggression have to do with humor? By that logic this guy must find muggings and rapes absolutely hi-fucking-larious.

Maybe it's just because of where I live, but I've seen people do some pretty strange things in public: flossing their teeth while walking through a mall, talking to themselves, yelling sermons about brimstone and hellfire, peeing in bushes... I think people who are accustomed to seeing strange behavior develop a tendence to tune it out. God forbid you make eye contact with the nutty people, they might latch on to you and follow you. Who wants that?

And how is riding a unicycle funny? I appreciate different types of humor - good slapstick - like I Love Lucy's "Vitameatavegamin" episode. I saw it on TV recently and could not believe how hard I laughed. I also love intelligent humor. Unfortunately, there aren't a lot of comedians who are capable of it.

But I think a lot of humor has the "Boy's Club" flavor - listen to Comedy Central and many of the male comedians' humor does exclude women at some point or other. Jokes about how women are crazy, gold diggers, PMS, "does this make me look fat", etc. Yeah, how original, just like "Take my wife, please!"

I think there is a serious lack of comedians who realize this and not only don't alienate or exclude women with their humor, but actually include them with humor that is unique to women.

Say that to Dave Attell, and he'll probably think "What, jokes about cramps?" Yeah, because women have nothing else to say that might be funny. Obviously.

2 comments:

Michelle said...

I don't find a professor riding a unicycle funny. I would find it funny if he crashed spectacularly while doing it. I might also find it funny if he managed to scam someone into funding this "research." But you know, funny in a "what is the world coming to kind of way."

Real Live Lesbian said...

Well, if a PROFESSOR said so...it must be! WTF?

I'm with you...I have a boat instead of kids! Cheaper and fewer spilled drinks!