The Aziz Ansari in the Room
SNL’s “Dinner Discussions” tackles the awkward conversation.
Would you rather have a dinner conversation about sexual assault or race? How many times have you tip-toed around a question you have been asked about a controversial news story? Some of society’s most pressing issues tend to be the most uncomfortable to talk about, and the majority of people are taught to avoid topics such as race, politics, and religion at the dinner table. Every year at Thanksgiving it seems as if everyone is on pins and needles waiting to see if there will be any family controversy due to opinionated family members. Saturday Night Live, which is known for pushing the boundaries, tackles the difficulty that many face when discussing issues such as sexual assault and race in the sketch “Dinner Discussions”, which epitomizes the struggle of addressing an “awkward” topic.
While the past year has seen an increase in the discussion of sexual assault, thanks to #MeToo, and the speaking out of many public figures, most people still would rather avoid having a conversation about “controversial” topics like sexual assualt and race .The #MeToo movement spread rapidly in the fall of 2017 through social media, and was elevated to the global stage as celebrities such as Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Lawrence, Viola Davis and Lady Gaga spoke out about their experiences. The campaign’s goal is to demonstrate the widespread reality of sexual assault and harassment and to create an arena in which real change can be brought about. What was not expected was the swift unearthing of accusations of sexual assault committed by well known stars such as Harvey Weinstein, Matt Lauer, and as discussed in the sketch, Aziz Ansari.
Ansari is not one who fits the “typical predator” stereotype of a scary looking male. However Ansari was accused of sexual assaulting a twenty three year old woman during a date through aggressive advances throughout the night. His response to the allegation was, “Everything did seem okay to me, so when I heard that it was not the case for her, I was surprised and concerned.” As Dave Chappelle humorously mentions in his stand up special “The Bird Revelation”, Harvey Weinstein, who has been accused of assaulting more than 80 women, fits the conventional image of a sexual predator. In contrast, Aziz Ansari was seen as a goofy, admired comedian and actor who is a self-proclaimed feminist and progressive individual. All of this made the accusation against him even more shocking.
“Harvey Weinstein is probably the first person I ever looked at a photograph of, and was like ‘Yeah he rapes.’” (Dave Chappelle)
The setting is a restaurant table occupied by a group of friends who are enjoying their time together. The scene looks like a familiar one to most people considering one in five Americans eats out at least once a week, often times with friends and family. “Dinner Discussions”, which aired in January of this year, depicts a conversation between the group, featuring frequent SNL actors such as Will Ferrell, Kate McKinnon and Kenan Thompson. The sketch begins light heartily when the group is discussing one of the couple’s dog and his strange habits, “This dog eats everything. He ate steel wool. And then he pooped silver.” While everyone seems interested and engaged in the conversation, the New York Times op-ed about Aziz Ansari, a former Saturday Night Live host, is brought up when a restaurant review written by the Times is mentioned and everyone is asked for their opinion. From there awkwardness ensues.
“I will speak on the topic of Aziz Ansari. I think…” “Careful…”
Afraid to “say the wrong thing” the group dances around their actual opinions about Aziz Ansari and the #MeToo movement as a whole. The sketch features periods in which the scene darkens and the wide range of emotions are seen on the faces around the table as the characters are baffled and judgmental about what is being said by others. Each character has his or her own nervous twitch response to the situation. Ferrell’s character places his face in a plate of spaghetti, Thompson stabs his knife into his steak in a very forceful manner, and Aidy Bryant goes as far as cutting of her ponytail with her knife.
“We are in a post-Babe.net universe now and we have to finish what we started.”
The center of the humor in “Dinner Discussions” is each individuals hesistant attempt to answer the question of “Did any of you read the Op-Ed piece…. about Aziz Ansari?” Although it is clear that almost every individual has an opinion regarding the situation, they fail to communicate them. Throughout the sketch barely anything is actually said about Aziz Ansari or sexual assault as a whole and the characters are desparate to bring the conversation back to the most basic level as the topic evolves into the racial intersectionality of sexual assault.
“I can’t do this anymore we have to talk about something else!” “Yes, something less controversial.”
The writers of the sketch clearly and effortlessly nail various societal reactions to the #MeToo movement along with Aziz Ansari himself, and it is no surprise that Saturday Night Live is able to humorously and realistically address a social commentary piece. The Washington Post summed up the entirety of the skit in the title of its article, “In a very dark sketch, SNL points out we still don’t know how to talk about Aziz Ansari.” The skit allows people to recognize their own reactions to, and avoidance of, topics such as sexual assault allegations and the racial dynamic that can be present in such allegations. Sexual assault and race are two of the most avoided conversation topics due to the simple fact that the subjects make people uncomfortable. But often times, the most awkward conversations are the most necessary in order to create change in the world.
So, back to the first question. Would you rather have a conversation about sexual assault or race? I would expect most people to respond with “neither”.