Well, having earlier finished my voracious gulping down of one of my latest sci-fi/fantasy novel purchases (Above The Snow Line: Steph Swainston) I now have to choose a new book to go to bed with, so I have picked "Me talk pretty one day" since several sixers have mentioned their admiration for David Sedaris.
Humour is a strange thing and often doesn't cross boundaries well, so I am interested to see how much I get out of this book. I'm not sure how many American comedians/comediennes I could name/enjoy. Apart from Bill Hicks, obviously ;)
According to Kate Fox (anthropologist & author of the fantastic book Watching the English) the "rules" of English humour are anti-earnestness, irony, understatement & self-deprecation; and the "rule" of English comedy is embarrassment. Think 'The Office' & 'Fawlty Towers'; Alan Partridge if he crossed the water. To quote from her book:-
In other cultures, there is 'a time and a place' for humour; it is a special, separate kind of talk. In English conversation, there is always an undercurrent of humour. We can barely manage to say 'hello' or comment on the weather without somehow contriving to make a bit of a joke out of it, and most English conversations will involve at least some degree of banter, teasing, irony, understatement, humourous self-deprecation, mockery or just silliness. Humour is our 'default mode'
Of course, this is not to say the English are "better" at humour, just that we are always looking to lighten a potentially awkward social situation by being a bit silly... forgive us in advance?
That sounds like as good an explanation of why I am apparently talking bollocks at any given moment - English humour!
ReplyDeleteBut yes, I suppose, looking at even these two exchanges you can see it's true ... even if we cannot be said to be especially socially awkward with each other, humour is our default mode.
I'm more than halfway through Tim O Brien's 'The things they carried' which I am finding very much more readable than anticipated. I cannot help comparing it with all the WWI reading which I have done: the mood is so very different (not surprisingly) and I am trying to identify what these differences might be caused by.
Bill Hicks link btw... just remember your 80's music ;) slighlty offensive ;)
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCbVkX7jdAM&feature=related
"Me Talk Pretty One Day" is one of my all-time favorites. It's best heard, though. David Sedaris' voice and delivery are priceless. Let me know what you think. Otherwise, I love this blog site. And fuck yes, you'll like me!
ReplyDeleteHi Mike, I'm guessing I'm losing a lot then... I'm finding a few bits mildly amusing so far. I will persevere ;)
ReplyDelete