Academic Explorations - You Will Be Offended: Satire, Comedy, and Public Discourse [Johns Hopkins University] {Residential} (Session 1)

At its most potent, humor—and in particular, satire—is a method for revealing uncomfortable truths and exposing hypocrisy. In doing so, it usually manages to provoke, shock, spark debate, and, yes, offend. Satire is most effective when audiences understand the cultural context of its message. In a globalized media landscape, what does comedy look like in other parts of the world? Can comedy transcend physical and metaphorical borders? This course explores the role satire and comedy have played in cultural and political debates across the globe. You and your classmates will read essays, editorials, and newspaper cartoons, and watch TV shows and stand-up routines to analyze the work and cultural impact of humorists like Mark Twain, Richard Pryor, Jaspal Bhatti, Samantha Bee, Eddie Izzard, Bassem Youssef, Joe Wong, and Hannah Gadsby. Using these examples as a model, you’ll write critical essays, debate the ethics of humor, and produce your own satirical texts.