In wake of Tosh's "joke" and the surrounding controversy, here are a few thoughts on the subject, mostly in response to comments here on the Sift.

>> ^EMPIRE:

I hate this whole rape-is-terrible-so-let-make-no-jokes-about-it. It's really annoying, insulting, and fucking stupid.

Yes, rape is terrible. So are many other things used for comedic effect: murder, racism, etc.

No one is allowed to demand SHIT from comedy. Take it or leave it.

Making a joke about something bad does not mean you condone it, in the slightest.


There are two categories of terrible things one can joke about: the first contains universally and unambiguously condemned actions, such as murder (note: not capital punishment or war killing) and pedophilia; the second concerns actions and opinions which, while generally condemned, are shared or indirectly condoned in certain societies. This includes homophobia, antisemitism, racism, misogyny, ableism, and, of course, violence towards women, including rape. When something from this category is the subject of comedy, the "how" and "why" is of utmost importance. Comparing Louis CK's rape jokes to those of Tosh (here), @bareboards2 and @Sotto_Voce illustrate the difference between rape jokes: CK's targets the absurd rationale behind date rape, while Tosh's targets rape victims while inscribing itself in a culture of violence/rape.

I could go on about rape culture et al., but instead I thought it might be useful to present an analogous situation concerning another of the ambivalent topics of the second category, namely antisemitism. In France, the stand-up comedian and political activist Dieudonné M'bala M'bala has caused plenty of controversy with his antisemitic antics. In 2009, for example, as part of a stand-up sketch he invited onto the scene an infamous holocaust denier and presented him with a mock award. The problem is that his "humour" relies on and panders to the very real antisemitism amongst some of his target audience (North-African immigrants, Muslims and far-leftists). Likewise, Tosh's retort feeds into the misogynistic, MRA-hole-populated, "shut up or get raped", "tits or GTFO" culture that is still all too present, especially on the Internet (Tosh's main comedy source/audience). In summary, it feeds on and into a hateful culture, and should be called out as such.

Several comments about it here on the Sift sing the tune of "if you don't like it, don't listen to it", but that is missing the point completely. If something someone says is reprehensible it should be called out and criticised. Why should comedy get a free pass? We see a similar reaction concerning misogyny and rape threats/"jokes" in Internet comments (see the tropes vs women debacle): "it's the Internet man, you should expect wanton threats of rape and murder (sometimes presented as "jokes"), so tits or GTFO". Just because a medium tends to use hyperbole and resort to shock-value does not mean anythings is excusable under the "free speech" clause.

In closing, an interesting article that sheds light on the particularity of rape (and the threat thereof) in womens' lives: Schroedinger's Rapist