The Dilemma
Coming into this course I was clueless about comedy. Like most, I knew comedy was supposed to make me laugh, but I never pondered the underlying themes within comedy. I only saw jokes and sketches on a very surface level, oblivious to the social commentary that was within jokes. The research and essay that I have conducted for this class has taken me past the surface level of jokes and helped me understand the importance and necessity of comedy. I once viewed comedy has a source of laughter but now see this art form as a way of social commentary, protest and overall an outlet for people to express their inner thoughts. My three essays can be connected with the idea of the American Dilemma. Gunnar Myrdal published his research on race relations in the United States and from this research, he created the idea of the American Dilemma. This is described as a vicious cycle in which whites oppress African Americans and then blame African Americans poor performance in society as the reason for their oppression. This research was published in 1944, but the American Dilemma still exists today and can be seen through the constant racial tension among whites and blacks. Each person and comedic piece I have analyzed in my essays is connected to this dilemma.
My first essay is Dave Chapelle’s Crack Problem. Dave Chappelle often references crack in his comedic pieces. I analyze parts of his stand up and sketches which are centered around crack. On the surface it may seem like Chappelle is just making fun of how crackheads act, but upon digging deeper I found a much more significant theme. Chappelle is providing social commentary on the drug and crime problem that is destroying black communities. This scenario is a dilemma itself. I use the crack epidemic in D.C. during the 80s and 90s to showcase the dilemma. African Americans in inner cities can use drug dealing as an economic ladder to better their lives. However, the dilemma is that by doing this they are poisoning their communities and putting themselves in danger. During the crack epidemic, drug dealers were able to make some money, but at the cost of thousands of people in their community being arrested, killed or developing a drug addiction. Even still, due to poor conditions in these neighborhoods, crack dealing seemed to be the best option. Growing up near D.C. Chappelle was a witness the destruction of inner-city communities from the crack epidemic. The white response to what was happening in the inner-city communities was just as the American Dilemma would suggest. Whites saw African Americans destroying their communities and pointed at this as the reason for their oppression. However, the reason for inner city destruction was more than selling crack rock. In these poor communities, drug dealing was the only way for many to have a descent living, the poor conditions of these communities were the real reason behind the oppression. By Chappelle including this subject in his comedy, he allows for a national audience to reflect on the why African Americans felt it was necessary to sell crack.
Key and Peele’s sketch White Zombies was the piece I analyzed for my second essay. I chose this because it centers around racial issues, just as my first essay did. Key and Peele provide social commentary on racial discrimination in white communities. The premise of the sketch is two African Americans have survived a zombie apocalypse and are faced with passing through a suburban community. As they run through, they realize the zombies, all of whom are white, don’t want to eat them and shy away from them. These zombies showcase stereotypical racist behaviors when they approach them too. I explore the racial history behind zombies and racial discrimination in America to understand the meaning behind the sketch. The racial oppression Key an Peele are portraying has not only happened in the past but is still occurring today. The main message from the sketch is that racial discrimination is still alive and well in American society. The American Dilemma is, at its core, a problem of racial discrimination between whites and blacks. This sketch perfectly embodies this theme and presents it in its most pure form.
My wild card essay is about a comedian whose content is often oriented around race. My first essay illustrates Dave Chappelle’s ability to express his thoughts on racial discrimination. This essay is framed around how I think he is the comeback comedian of the year. I take the reader through Chappelle’s journey, from the come up, to stardom, to his fall and finish describing his comeback. Chappelle went from being at the top of comedy, to vanishing from the public scene unexpectedly. The mystery behind him leaving comedy makes his comeback, which includes three Netflix specials, that much greater. Chappelle’s humor is fitting to the theme of the American Dilemma. His race-based jokes are constantly pushing the envelope and causing listeners to reflect on the issues he brings up.
As a reader, I hope that you can get an understanding of the American Dilemma which is the underlying theme in each of my essays. My analysis of each work should provide a window for you to see the social commentary on the American Dilemma each comedic piece is expressing.