Dark Humor

In the McCartney lyrics podcast, Paul makes the observation that some of the dark humor of his Liverpool childhood seemed to come out of the determination to laugh at anything, no matter how dangerous or hateful. There was much about suffering and oppression that could not be fixed, or not readily.  The only thing left was to stare it down and laugh in its face.Therefore, humor that we avoid now, because it may offend or insult, was more common then, and not necessarily because they were more coarse and insensitive, but because people were too poor, or injured, or abandoned to do much about it.

We have a greater sensitivity now, and are increasingly careful to not offend.  I approve of most of this. Yet is it not founded on the idea that we can fix nearly everything about ourselves, (gulp) other people, and (double gulp) about society? Insofar as things can be fixed it is probably better not to make light of them. Yet if the fixing is not really available - if a complete absence of poverty or racism or disease is not ever going to be available in even some approximation, are we not stealing one of the best consolation prizes away from them?

And is that not then, a cruelty on our part?

This doesn’t mean, of course, that we have only a hope of future joys—we can be full of joy here and now even in our trials and troubles. Taken in the right spirit these very things will give us patient endurance; this in turn will develop a mature character, and a character of this sort produces a steady hope, a hope that will never disappoint us. Romans 5:3-4; JB Phillips