Uproarious: How Feminists and Other Subversive Comics Speak Truth

FEATURING CYNTHIA WILLETT – Comedians, like their predecessors the court jesters, are traditionally truth-tellers in our societies. They couch harsh truths within humor to soften the blow at those in power. But we’ve been told for years that men are the funny ones and that women just aren’t funny.

That is of course changing thanks to the pioneering work of feminist comedians of color like Margaret Cho and Wanda Sykes who aren’t just funny – they’re engaging in subversive social commentary. Analyzing the changing landscape of comedy and what it means for social justice issues today is a new book titled Uproarious.

Cynthia Willett, Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor of Philosophy at Emory University. Her earlier books include Interspecies Ethics, Irony in the Age of Empire: Comic Perspectives on Freedom and Democracy. Her new book, with Julie Willett is ‘Uproarious: How Feminists and Other Subversive Comics Speak Truth.’