Feminist comedy

Feminist comedy refers to comedic acts and styles that further feminist principles, including gender equality and awareness of the social experience of gender. Comedy, the creative works with the intention of humor, has been historically dominated by men. The current comedy culture climate remains male-focused and is currently accepting of women comedians.^[1][2] The conversation surrounding gender-aware comedy has included articles and opinions from many male comedians and fans that are rooted in the idea that women aren’t funny, despite protest from successful female comedians and audiences.^[3][1] However, there is a difference between female humor and feminist humor.^[1] As a practice, feminist comedy is not solely comedy performed by women, as many women, especially early female comics, “served to reinforce… cultural stereotypes” and patriarchal views about women and gender.^[4] While some scholars have argued that this is because feminism may be antithetical to comedy, which is often described as an aggressive, necessarily masculine act in which the performer centers themselves, others have argued that humor's inclination to subvert hierarchies makes it a particularly effective communication platform for feminist comedians.^[5][6] Feminist comedy frequently references and discusses female-gendered issues and topics such as menstruation, rape, gender inequality, beauty norms, and machismo.^[6][1] Along the lines of intersectionality, which suggests that social identities and systems of oppression are interrelated, many feminist comedians also discuss homophobia, racism, and transphobia.^[7][6]