#SexIs - Are Rape Jokes Ever Funny?

Contributor: - Kira - - Kira -
Quote:
Originally posted by iluvPHSfh9
Rape just isn't funny, it's not something to joke about. there is a line that people need to respect. what is next? abortion jokes?
Errr...don't a ton of people make abortion jokes? Off the top of my head I can think of at LEAST five Family Guy abortion bits, and that's just one show.
07/27/2012
Contributor: Beck Beck
Quote:
Originally posted by - Kira -
I agree with this. I'd also like to invoke one of my favorite quotes: "I may not agree with what you say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it." Yay for free speech.

Still going with that I find it personally ... more
I'm with you! I think we are free to talk about or in this case make jokes about anything we want because of freedom of speech, but I do think jokes about subjects like rape are in poor taste.
07/27/2012
Contributor: Woman China Woman China
Words are powerful.

They have power.

Think about it. A few years ago, whenever someone even said the word rape, you cringed, shivers went down your spine and more.

Now? It has become such a common word for a terrible event. My family loves to say, "the phone company is raping us up the ass" or "I got raped over at the market" in both cases meaning being ripped off.

This word was once a powerful word, never used, and now it is just a common word like the response "fine" when someone asks how you are.

I think it is terrible that these words are being destroyed and it's jsut another word.

So of course I feel that the word "rape" should never be used in a joke.
07/28/2012
Contributor: Ansley Ansley
Quote:
Originally posted by Woman China
Words are powerful.

They have power.

Think about it. A few years ago, whenever someone even said the word rape, you cringed, shivers went down your spine and more.

Now? It has become such a common word for a terrible event. My ... more
Words are not powerful. Words are words. People give them power.
07/28/2012
Contributor: Internet Brat Internet Brat
There are certain things in this world that I will never find funny; rape is one of those things. He was out of line for sure.
07/28/2012
Contributor: Sir Sir
I do not find many jokes amusing or humorous. But then again, most "jokes" are ignorant or discriminatory and people do not even realize it.
07/28/2012
Contributor: Gdom Gdom
Tosh was definitely out of line. I do, however, think there's a place for a very particular sort of "rape joke." If the joke is VERY carefully constructed and it mocks not the victims of sexual assault, but the perpetrators, rape culture more broadly, or another appropriate target, then it has the potential to not only be acceptable, but helpful. A well-executed joke doesn't have to make light of a serious issue (if it did, I'd be the first one to say that no rape joke could ever be acceptable); instead, it has the potential to be a restorative and poignant form of social commentary, which can be a weapon against rape culture and a method of coping with the ugly reality of sexual assault.

But did Tosh do that? No, he didn't. His "joke" (which was phrased more like some sort of weird veiled threat) made light of rape and sexual assault, which isn't just "offensive" (because if it merely offended me, the rational response would just be to ignore it), but genuinely harmful, especially considering that around 20% of the women in his audience (and maybe a few men too) had been or would, at some point in their lives, be victims of sexual assault.
07/28/2012
Contributor: Vii Vii
I think rape jokes just perpetuate rape culture. I really don't see how it's funny to joke about such a horrible and traumatizing experience.
07/28/2012
Contributor: Gdom Gdom
Oh, and just to clear up this silly bit that gets thrown around about X, Y, or Z offensive thing being "protected free speech" (and therefore somehow immune to criticism?), that's just a silly response to detractors. Tosh is legally free to make tactless rape jokes and everyone else is free to criticize him for it. That's the beauty of free speech: you can say you dislike the way in which someone else (e.g. Tosh) exercised his free speech. And if Comedy Central were to drop him over the media uproar, that furthermore wouldn't be a violation of free speech. If you're an entertainer and you fail to entertain (in this case, by saying something that I take to have been genuinely mean-spirited and harmful), then you get fired. I swear, if I ever have to read another defense of an outrageous statement based on the fact that it's some sort of criticism-immune free speech, I'm going to start hitting people with con law textbooks.
07/28/2012
Contributor: sXeVegan90 sXeVegan90
No one should ever joke about rape. That was just way out of line. I'm pretty sure this moron has seen the effects of rape on women and men, and if he had thought about this he wouldn't have made a joke, or maybe he would have. Must be one of those comedians who will do anything for a laugh...pathetic.
07/28/2012
Contributor: Adriana Ravenlust Adriana Ravenlust
I would only ever laugh at rape jokes in a group of people whom I knew very well, and I would never say that someone deserved it. More often than use, rape jokes I hear use it as an analogy. It's still insensitive, yes.. but I know that some of my friends are okay with it.
07/28/2012
Contributor: LadyDarknezz LadyDarknezz
I've been raped multiple times and it is NEVER funny. There's a lot more I could say about it, but I am a bit upset at the moment...
07/28/2012
Contributor: GONE! GONE!
I think the only time it could be funny would be in an ouch-that's-relevant kind of way. For example, the reason "dead baby" jokes could be taken as possibly funny is because there isn't a huge culture that contributes to babies dying in horrific ways and if someone's baby dies people generally don't tell the parents that the baby died because of something they wore or something else ridiculous like that (And if someone did, they would be considered an asshole.).
Unfortunately, rape is just treated differently than other violent crimes and violent subjects so it shouldn't be joked about the same way either.
Of course, it's totally different in the context of the joke being told by survivors or others who face the reality of rape on a regular basis. Humor can help people get through things.
07/28/2012
Contributor: hot lil momma hot lil momma
The joke was in poor taste. That's not a subject that I ever find joke worthy
07/28/2012
Contributor: solitudinarian solitudinarian
Tosh was out of line. I sometimes joke about rape, but only with my boyfriend because we engage in rape play (which is obviously consensual). It's directed at myself. I certainly don't go around saying other people should be raped, or joke about it in any other context. Not sure if the heckler was out of line. I'm unfamiliar with the "unwritten laws" of stand-up.
07/28/2012
Contributor: amazon amazon
I don't condone rape or violence at all, but... Daniel Tosh is a comedian. He's honestly no worse than George Carlin ever was, and he wasn't making a public statment. I'm upset at the fervor around this issue, I think it's way overblown!
07/28/2012
Contributor: Upyourreviews Upyourreviews
Quote:
Originally posted by Ansley


Devil's Advocate: Are Rape Jokes Ever Funny? - Click here to read this great article by Roland Hulme!

Recently, Daniel Tosh was heckled during one of his shows after performing a joke about rape. In response to the heckler, Tosh ... more
I tend to find humor in dark things, however, there is always a line and depends on the context and who is saying it. I joke with my male friends all the time "It's not rape if you yell surprise first!" but with me being female and them being men, we find humor in it.
07/28/2012
Contributor: unfulfilled unfulfilled
My husband watches Tosh.O all the time, and he's just an offensive guy in my opinion. Rape jokes are not funny.
07/28/2012
Contributor: - Kira - - Kira -
Quote:
Originally posted by Gdom
Oh, and just to clear up this silly bit that gets thrown around about X, Y, or Z offensive thing being "protected free speech" (and therefore somehow immune to criticism?), that's just a silly response to detractors. Tosh is legally ... more
I'm aware of all of this and I use the "free speech thing" for offensive stuff a lot. I didn't say his joke should be free from receiving criticism, in fact my second paragraph said I personally found it distasteful. People are welcome to say what they want about it because, well, free speech and all. When I say I support free speech, I simply mean that there shouldn't be legal restrictions on things like this. People can and should be allowed to say what they want to say, offensive or no. Then, in turn, people can react how they want to react.

And I'd be fine with Comedy Central dropping him 'cause I still think rape jokes aren't funny. But if they don't, then they don't and I'll move on.
07/28/2012
Contributor: mama2007 mama2007
Quote:
Originally posted by LadyDarknezz
I've been raped multiple times and it is NEVER funny. There's a lot more I could say about it, but I am a bit upset at the moment...
:-( im sorry. i was raped once in 2006 and still deal with it. i agree with u 100%. if you ever need to talk, please feel free to message me. I'm always an ear to listen
07/28/2012
Contributor: Ansley Ansley
Quote:
Originally posted by - Kira -
I'm aware of all of this and I use the "free speech thing" for offensive stuff a lot. I didn't say his joke should be free from receiving criticism, in fact my second paragraph said I personally found it distasteful. People are ... more
Tosh is Comedy Central's bread and butter, they won't fire him.
07/28/2012
Contributor: Eliza Eliza
I read an awesome article by a feminist blogger about how to write a funny rape joke--make the rapist the butt of the joke instead of the victim. Their argument was that if you're making fun of/calling out rape culture rather than perpetuating it, then it's okay.
07/28/2012
Contributor: Pinkshirt Pinkshirt
Quote:
Originally posted by amazon
I don't condone rape or violence at all, but... Daniel Tosh is a comedian. He's honestly no worse than George Carlin ever was, and he wasn't making a public statment. I'm upset at the fervor around this issue, I think it's way overblown!
Agree
07/28/2012
Contributor: - Kira - - Kira -
Quote:
Originally posted by Ansley
Tosh is Comedy Central's bread and butter, they won't fire him.
Is he? I haven't watched that station since Jon Stewart was their bread and butter. lol
07/28/2012
Contributor: laflauta laflauta
Quote:
Originally posted by Eliza
I read an awesome article by a feminist blogger about how to write a funny rape joke--make the rapist the butt of the joke instead of the victim. Their argument was that if you're making fun of/calling out rape culture rather than perpetuating ... more
I almost never find rape jokes funny, and the exceptions are exactly what you're talking about. The example that I always think of is Wanda Sykes's bit about having a detachable vagina. It's clearly making fun of rape culture and not condoning it.
07/28/2012
Contributor: Ms. Peaches Ms. Peaches
No they are not
07/28/2012
Contributor: Itsnotabanana Itsnotabanana
Absolutely not okay.
07/28/2012
Contributor: Gdom Gdom
Quote:
Originally posted by - Kira -
I'm aware of all of this and I use the "free speech thing" for offensive stuff a lot. I didn't say his joke should be free from receiving criticism, in fact my second paragraph said I personally found it distasteful. People are ... more
Oh, I thought what you said was perfectly reasonable; my annoyance was actually directed elsewhere. Saying that Tosh (or anyone else) shouldn't be legally restricted from saying tactless things is a perfectly cogent position. I'm not actually sure I agree entirely with absolutely free speech, since the supposed "slippery slope" that's supposed to follow any restrictions of free speech or expression has yet to occur in many (or any) of the countries that presently restrict the use of, say, racial slurs (in clear cases like that, I find it rather easy to draw a bright line between acceptable and unacceptable speech; hence the lack of a genuine slippery slope).

That said, my annoyance was meant to be directed only at the people I often find that believe "free speech" to also guarantee some bizarre immunity from criticism, which is just plain silly.
07/28/2012
Contributor: teachmetouchme teachmetouchme
Any "joke" that is directed at a group and is derogatory, is never funny--race, sex, ability, ethnicity, eye color...not funny. Period, no exceptions.
07/28/2012
Contributor: XxFallenAngelxX XxFallenAngelxX
it all depends on the day, mood, etc.
07/28/2012