Thoughts Behind...

The concept of satire in comedy is fundamentally questionable, though it works. Society's rule is generally to avoid calling out people's flaws, yet comedy finds a loophole of balance to do so without offending the general population. The obvious face of comedy in America is Saturday Night Live. Although the program is known for its many parodies of electoral debates and "Weekend Updates," most of its production is not government-mocking. It varies from commercial parodies to high school skits and more; these clearly don't target specific individuals, allowing for wide entertainment. In other cases, the subject of the joke is so absurd that everyone can enjoy it--even the subject itself. Because the principal purpose of comedy is to entertain, those being made fun of must accept that they are only a small expense of this entertainment. And even more, because these jokes are exaggerations, the audience knows not to take the message too literally. These behaviors a...

All across the world, there is a type of people called "snafs." Snafs are blended into society--some conspicuous, some never revealed. Indeed there is a variation of snafs, though most tend to be of ages ten through twenty and share similar preoccupations. Snafs are not born into this identity; only once they encounter their leader do they become snafs. The process of conversion starts with mild and casual admiration of their leader's products, then quickly spirals into total fixation. Most spend their time practicing their most integral rituals, even while going about their days. Like chants, meaningful words of their leaders replay and leave lasting sounds ringing in their heads. Once familiar enough with these sounds, the words become effortlessly ingrained in snafs' minds and they even start to chant themselves. The leaders of each type of snaf are worshipped. However, like snafs, they were not always like this. Through a process of fate and light, they rea...

As Staples describes his lack of awareness another race's perception of a black man, I can't help but relate this to my own life. Of course, white females don't watch me, wary of danger; but as an Asian at Troy High, I understand how I can be "scarcely noticeable against a backdrop" of diversity. Staples could once pass as normal or "good" compared to the violence and crime among his community in Chester, but now as he walks the streets of New York City, he has to become presentable by humming the tunes of Vivaldi. In comparison, as I walk the hallways of Troy High, I laugh loudly, chat about the strangest topics, and, at times, speak some Korean. Occasionally I catch a judgmental glance, but I have never been bullied nor victimized. And at times like this, I am brought down to reality and realize how incredibly lucky I am to be in such an accepting environment. How many schools can pride themselves on having more than one Indian dance team? For havi...

Mrs. Smith or Mrs. Jones-Smith. Which is more likely to be the feminist? Tannen points out that "all married women's surnames are marked," and these labels become a factor for judgment, while a male will never be judged for being a Mr. This struck me as the only indisputable form of being "marked" as a woman, yet I soon came to realize that even this may be flawed. In many Asian cultures, particularly Chinese, women tend to keep their surnames as they get married. And to be perfectly candid, I didn't attribute this to an act of female empowerment, as I would have in Western culture. (Unfortunately, this is where my racial fixedness comes in, but that discussion is for another time.) I assumed this tendency was a tradition and simply a norm in society, making me doubt the validity of using surnames to measure being "marked." From what I've found, like most cultures, the Chinese have a deeply patriarchal society where the family one is born i...