Bill Hicks's Influence On Popular Culture

Alain De Botton claims that the chief aim of humorists is not trying to entertain anybody, but instead to convey with impunity messages that might be dangerous or impossible to state directly. Alain´s claim is completely absurd and is wrong for many reasons, cartoons, comedians, shows and acts have been around forever if they were meant to cause harm in any way then in this day and age they would be shut down by now. The game show host of home Family Feud, Steve Harvey, is a comedian and would never cause anyone harm. Alain does make a good point however, it is easy to understand why one would think that chief humorists are trying to target a select few either throughout a show or act.

Trevor Noah rhetorical strategy was when he question’s Lahren’s ethos and the use of her platform. Lahren has created a platform for herself that reaches millions of viewers as the new face for social media conservatives. Noah questions whether she realizes how her facts, comments and body language can provoke anger and outrage to many people. It’s okay to express your opinion but when you make statements like, "Black Lives Matter movement was the “next KKK” because of violent acts against the police were caused by a few isolated members who claim to be part of movement. He further states that, “Just because you say the thing doesn’t mean that’s what it stands for,” and followed it with a statement Lahren made on her show, “You’ve argued on your show, just because Donald Trump has KKK supporters doesn’t mean he’s in the KKK.” Noah was trying prove how these type of statements are not accurate but how continuing to spread this information to viewer is irresponsible.

For children with learning disabilities, the classroom can be an intimidating place. Renowned learning disabilities expert Richard Lavoie explains why in the film (F.A.T. City) In this film psychologists, teachers, parents, and children including his son are asked to sit on the other side of the teacher's desk. Through a number of simulations and different activities as models (for example, telling a story without using any words that contain the letter N). He even required them to recite aloud and complete timed spelling and writing activities and it appeared as though some of the teacher were starting to get frustrated. Richard Lovie yelled at some of the participants, reprimanded them, mocked them, interrupted them and most of all embarrassed them. By saying ("Are you trying to be funny?" "Try harder!" "Pay attention!" "Why can't you do this? Everyone else can.”) Some of the participants in this film experienced the same frustration, anxiety, pain and tension that children with special needs do on a daily basis.

What is the truth in comedy? In an essay by Dave Barry, Barry talks about how he hates people who litter and what his doctor did when he talked about it with him. Dave barry anecdote “Neat Guys” is high level comedy that uses witty comparison and sarcasm to reveal a universal truth about neat guys. Sooner or later Barry and Dr.Jeffrey will make a difference in the world for people who litter.

Summer Heights High is an Australian TV mockumentary mini-series; created in 2007, focusing on the 3 main characters: Jonah, Mr G and Ja’mie, all three are played by the creator of the show, Chris Lilley. Each characters are depicted through the use of satirical elements, such: stereotypes, hyperbole, irony, juxtaposition and sarcasm. Chris Lilley, uses satirical devices to poke fun at the modern stereotypes of the education system to create comedy and show how these stereotypes are unnecessary as most of the time, they are incorrect.

In society today, people are becoming more and more easily offended. A simple joke is often times blown way out of proportion instead of being laughed off and taken as just that. Dave Barry, a comedic essayist, understands that idea, which is why he uses self-deprecating humor to distract the readers from the fact that he is making fun of them. Along with the use of sarcasm and hyperboles, this form of humor is, at times, relatable and allows him to get certain points across without offending his readers.

Humorists, such as cartoonists, satirical writers, and stand-up comics, often base their work on current events and issues. They never fail to put a twist on their subject, making it easier to digest and understand; therefore, they make the subject more appealing to otherwise uninterested or repulsed people. Albeit the fact that a large part of the public may be misinformed in response to the humorist’s twist on the message, humorists are able to state directly what news articles cannot by shedding light on a subject, by talking about controversial issues, or by merely giving busy people the ability to catch up on current eventualities in the short window of time they have.

Hodgman had a knack for using humor in No Wonder They Call Me a Bitch. In such a repulsive essay she used humor to block out the nauseating unbearable parts of this Essay. Her misery was out pleasure. The descriptions were so revolting that I couldn’t help but laugh at the poor girls suffering.

Many audiences of stand up comedy enjoy hearing their favorite comedian entertain them. But what would one think when a comedian cracks a joke about a sensitive topic, for example, a tragedy that affected hundreds of people. Some may argue that, comedians are not supposed to overstep the boundary of controversial jokes. These controversial jokes are linked with political correctness—which is used to describe language, policies, and measures that are taken to avoid offense to certain groups of people. Comedians are not compelled to restrain from controversial topics due to the topic not being sugar-coated, the higher level of contemplation that the joke can reach, and the job of the comedian—to make the current issue manageable.

One of the most valuable aspects of personality is humor – we value one’s sense of humor and make friends often based on finding certain things funny. But how and why do we consider things to be funny at all? Human beings have strived to uncover fundamental truths about human nature for centuries – even millennia – but humor itself is still yet to be pinpointed. Henri Bergson is only one of many who has attempted this feat, and his essay Laughter: an essay on the meaning of the comic from 1911 breaks down comedy into what he believes to be its essential forms and origins. While Bergson makes many valid points, Charlie Chaplin’s film Modern Times that was brought to screens only twenty years later seems to contradict many of Bergson’s theories, while Bergson seems to contradict even himself over the course of his essay.

Fat acceptance is a radical concept that most Americans shy away from discussing. This is not the case with Hillel Schwartz’s essay “Fat and Happy?” from his book Never Satisfied. Schwartz discusses the way fat people are treated by society and what he believes life would be like if we lived in a Fat Society rather than the current Skinny World we live in. In his article it seems that Schwartz’s goal is to capture the attention of as many different audiences as possible by using sarcasm and many different sides to his argument that fat acceptance should be an important value in society. While Schwartz tries to connect to as many different audience members as possible with a dry and popular sense of humor by implementing a sarcastic tone, his

As the Boov say, “many fingers make up a hand.” Just like this expression, Many components make up effective humor. Adam Rex, the author of the book Smek for President, shows us a perfect example of how not to use them. The tools of humor, such as tone, diction, imagery and more are present, but they don’t make you laugh. Adam Rex, as a “funny author,” leaves much to be desired in his writing.

George Lopez is an Mexican-American comedian. When he was eleven years old he watched Freddie Prinze perform and instantly knew that he wanted to become a comedian. Now more than 30 years later he is a well know stand-up comedian, and also known for his television and film comedies. George Lopez growing up with Mexican grandparents influenced his comedic take, while his use of personal experiences and repetition make his jokes funny, and the fact the his audience can relate makes him a successful comedian.

One important thing that Steve Martin learned to do throughout his experiences in Born Standing Up, is to take risks. Early in Steve’s stand-up career he seemed like he did what he knew worked best and never wanted to stray too far from that. However, as Steve goes on to learn, it can pay off greatly to take these big risks in his comedic routine and in his life. One example of this is when Steve decided that he would perform his act without offering any punch lines for the audience to laugh at. Even though his first reviews were negative, with one even stating that his act was “the most serious booking error in the history of Los Angeles music” (Martin 113), he didn’t give up. This can also be seen in his willingness to take chances in the smaller acts that he performed, such as at Vanderbilt University when the audience didn’t leave after the show was over and Steve was forced to improvise what to do.

Ken Robinson delivers a TED talk on “schools kill creativity” filmed in February 2006. The talk aims to challenge the education system and the fact that it has little emphasis on the creativity of individuals. Robinson notes that children should not only be made to pursue their studies but also follow their passions and their interests which lie in their talents. He refers to Picasso’s statement that every child is born an artist (6:05). Robinson urges the crowd to rethink the strategies they use to educate the world. The speaker quotes that people do not grow into creativity but out of it or rather educated out of it. Robinson asserts that education