Poll: Can humour go too far? (potentially offensive image within)

[Aaron Sylvester]

Offensive? Heck no, that was BRILLIANT. Very, very hilarious. Of course it's all about perception and who you are, what your experiences have been, what the subject of the joke means to you.

I personally don't give a shit about what Hitler did because he's not here today and he hasn't done anything that has directly influenced me or anyone I care/cared about. And anyone who gets angry at me yelling "BUT HE KILLED SO MANY PEOPLE, HOW CAN YOU NOT CARE?!" the answer would be "Because I tend not to have any emotions for people who died long ago, especially if they were people I didn't even fucking KNOW. Now shut up and mind your own business."

If no one is seriously physically hurt, then no.

^ Basically this

In Yahtzee's own words:

"You know what? A society where anyone can make jokes about anyone else and everyone laughs is a truly tolerant society. Political correctness-charged censorship only serves to engender resentment and distance between social groups."

 

[Verkula]

Depends...for me personally, that image is just simply not funny, thats all.

 

[Murais]

Humor can go too far, sure. That point is usually what we call the dead horse, though. Or the point in which there ceases to be an actual joke (no humor structure).

Now, do I think there is a limit to what can and can't be funny? Absolutely not. Humor is making observation with poignancy. The only subjects that cannot be joked upon are those that cannot be perceived or perceived relationally.

Semantics are semantics, but sometimes they make an entire world of difference.

 

[Whateveralot]

It's 4chan. Wadda'ya'expect?

But sure, humour can go too far for some people. The fact that something "goes too far" is a judgement from te receiving end of the humour, not a wrongdoing from the side of the person that spreads that humour.

Imagine an alien race which finds all we concider humour to be offensive. Does that mean all our humour is bad and "too far". Definitely not.

 

[Headdrivehardscrew]

Generally speaking: If you're easily offended, stay the hell away from 4chan. It's where people go to let the inner troll roam free, and it allows many a nice person to not go completely insane.

RE: Image - hell no. See, the Nazis are special. They're the only special brand of socialists that are vilified for a bunch of truly inacceptable things they've done, yet their achievements have formed our societies like hardly anything or anyone before or after them. Yet, still, and even though we all had a look at them in history class, we generally know hardly anything about them, and a large part of what we believe we know is really just propaganda - theirs as well as ours. It's a bit of a shame, really.

See, even though my last remaining grandfather survived concentration camp by eating mud and worms and rats - a decidedly non-kosher diet, mind you - i am able to laugh at even the poorest taste jokes, if they are intelligent, surprising or otherwise fresh. I have first person reports of how 'life' was inside those hell holes during the time the evil Nazis ran them - something that's totally absent from the time when the same camps were run by, say, the British or the Russian, who were not in any way more humane or friendly in any way whatsoever. Human history is also the history of the odd ones out, the losers, those that got wiped out and silenced. No matter if the reports are true or completely made up, history is always the history of the winners, the conquerors, the spin doctors. Humour allows us to digest hard-to-swallow bits of our past without going completely mad. Yet, there are reasons why there are very little jokes about Russian communist rule or European "Dark Ages" when Islam forcefully conquered more than just the fringes of the European continent. People were just plain too busy dying and/or being scared silly to come up with funny joke material.

No, in general, proper humour cannot ever be taken too far. There are a lot of crap, raw, not well thought out jokes and comedians and comics that are about as funny testicular cancer (here's looking at you, Adam Sandler), but even they seem to be able to find an audience.

I think it's important to laugh about Hitler and the Nazis, but I also think it's of prime importance we all learn about what went down in Germany at the beginning of the last century - and why. Because - and that's the real bummer - it could happen again, pretty much everywhere. I also think it's important to acknowledge that there's a high chance the society you live in has laws, regulations and procedures in effect that were invented by and first installed by those evil National Socialists we've all come to love to hate so much. If that's not ironic, I don't know what is.

 

[Trippy Turtle]

No, that was posted somewhere where it would be found funny. Its the context that can be problematic, not the humor itself.

 

[MeChaNiZ3D]

I found that joke hilarious just then. I had a smile on my face reading it. Call me a monster.

I find a lot of sick and 'controversial' jokes perfectly fine. I remember being slightly averse to one of Jimmy Carr's jokes about abortion, but it turned out to be a serious setup for a less serious payoff and I was amused just the same. There are jokes in poor taste, jokes that do not fit the context, and jokes that are not funny, but I do not think there are jokes that are too offensive to be jokes.

Spoiler: Warning: Very Sick Joke

A man goes to a pharmacist and asks for birth control for his 14 year old daughter.
The pharmacist says "Your 14 year old is sexually active?!"
To which the man says "Active? Hell no! She just lies there and cries."

Actually I stand corrected, I only half-smiled at that.

 

[Luna]

If the idea that humor can be taken too far is accepted, then it will have to be decided what is and what is not acceptable which is problematic because it could lead to more and more things becoming taboo and leaving people with nowhere to step without offending some group of people.


Let it remain that humor going to far is only an opinion of an individual or group of individuals and a clear cut answer to limit what we may poke fun at simply limits us rather than setting us free.

 

[Luna]

If the idea that humor can be taken too far is accepted, then it will have to be decided what is and what is not acceptable which is problematic because it could lead to more and more things becoming taboo and leaving people with nowhere to step without offending some group of people.


Let it remain that humor going to far is only an opinion of an individual or group of individuals and a clear cut answer to limit what we may poke fun at simply limits us rather than setting us free.

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

I am not offended by any type of humor, but there are certain things I just don't find funny and tasteful. I also accept that there are certain groups of people who are offended by some types of "humor" and a lot of them have every right to be offended. Does that mean people should stop making offensive jokes? Of course not. Because even though you're offended, and it's understandable, ultimately nothing happens when you're offended. Your feelings get hurt a bit and that's it. Deal with it and move on. Personally, I would never hurt someone's feelings intentionally, and I try to avoid telling jokes that are offensive to someone I know and care about, but that's just me. I don't think my way is the best and the only right way. And I don't expect other people to do as I do.

 

[Gordon_4_v1legacy]

So recently a friend of mine showed me this image:

Spoiler

And the question "Is there a point where humour can be taken too far?" was raised. So I figured why not ask the Escapist's community.

What's your opinion? Can humour never go too far because someone will always think it's funny, or should it not be taken too far, like this image might have for some people?

Not gonna lie, as soon as I read the first line, the tune from Pokemon just starting playing in my head and I smiled.

Humor is a subjective bastard, so my only advice would be to know your audience. Don't lead off with the Holocaust jokes if you're doing a show in Tel Aviv and maybe cut the Niggers in the Cotton Field skit from your Harlem appearance.

I won't say you shouldn't be allowed to do this or the many thousands of other possible combinations, just be aware that actions have consequences. Also, some guys are just that good that they can do this shit and get a laugh or recover like Gilbert Gottfried did with the 9/11 joke he opened a roast with but saved himself by launching into 'The Aristocrats'.

 

[Nieroshai]

There's an audience for everything. If I told that joke to my best friend, his sides would be splitting in laughter. If I told it to a random classmate, I'd get punched. Especially if he's Jewish.

 

[Nieroshai]

No, if someone finds something unfunny, they are more than welcome to scamper off and not listen to it.

And I had a good laugh at that image.

I need to ask then: what about seriously plucking an emotional cord in a way that hurts them? Making fun of someone's mother, and the funeral was a week ago. Making light of genocide in front of that target group (Nazi joke to a Jew, etc). Short joke to someone who's been abused because of his height. There's a point where people need to have a thicker skin, and there's a point where you're an offensive moron who thinks it's the victim's fault they got hurt. A point where you're a bully. A point where you deserve whatever retaliation comes. Sure they don't have to respond. But they heard it. You did the damage. Your right to cause it is on par with their right to respond.

I'm sure there's a nice, long counter-argument coming. That's fine. But you didn't have to listen, and you don't have to respond. You are welcome to scamper off if you found this unfunny or offensive.

 

[SilverUchiha]

So recently a friend of mine showed me this image:

Spoiler

And the question "Is there a point where humour can be taken too far?" was raised. So I figured why not ask the Escapist's community.

What's your opinion? Can humour never go too far because someone will always think it's funny, or should it not be taken too far, like this image might have for some people?

I'm more offended by the first response. It's spelled "you're" not "your". God people are fucking stupid...

OT: As to the image itself (song included) it is pretty offensive, but I still find it somewhat humorous. Not to mention there is a line in there say, "in a war we can't defend" meaning the writer is acknowledging that what the song is proposing and what Hitler did are terrible beyond any defensible measure. The fact that was even acknowledged in the song, however subtle, gives me the impression the person only means to be funny and not to actually offend people. Least, that's what I get out of it.

 

[Legion]

If something is said with the intent of being amusing in a benign way, as opposed to malicious, then I do not see the issue.

Was that image made to be laughed at? Or to mock the Jewish dead?

If it was the former, then I do not see the issue. If it is the latter, then it's not a joke.

 

[Sgt. Dante]

I don't think there's a line humor can cross, and holy hell was the given example hilarious

You mean Heil-arious?

The thing about humor is that it's subjective. Any comment can cause offense if the recipient is sensitive enough and anything can be found funny if /b/ is to be believed. The example image for instance is in really poor taste, but is also really funny.