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MrFribbles -> RE: What do you think is NOT funny? (5/30/2008 10:29:39 PM)
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Quite frankly, I think in 99% of cases, the morality of a joke is not decided by its content, but rather by the situation in which it is told. SonInMe, with the example you used, I can definitely understand it not being funny. But for me, if one of my good friends did that to me, heh, I'd probably still be in pain, I'd think it was funny, because I knew my friend meant it that way.
Even things like racist jokes can, I think, in some cases be OK. If I'm telling them with a group of friends who know that the only reason I'm telling them is to point out the utter stupidity of racism, then I don't think it's wrong. Especially if they're aimed at my own race, heh. Some of my best laughs have come with a multi-racial group telling insensitive jokes, because we all realized we were telling them purely in jest.
And sometimes, seemingly innocent jokes can be very offensive. One time, my Pastor told a blond joke in church (not even one of the more offensive ones... I don't remember it exactly, but I don't think it made them out to be especially stupid or anything, as most do), and soon after, a blond visitor that morning got up and walked out. Obviously nobody can say for sure, but it seems likely that in this case, a joke that was meant well was taken very wrongly - hence why it's important to not only be aware of your own heart attitude about the joke you're telling, but also the potential heart attitude of those who might be listening.
So, I would say - look at the heart of the joke, both the heart of the teller, and the heart of the tellee. While there are some jokes I would deem automatically wrong (The Aristocrat, for example), I would say very many of them can be used for either good or evil.
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