I think that, for so much of our matriculation through American society, black people sort of feel like outsiders.
Kenya BarrisRead
I believe comedy is a really good lens to filter serious issues through. If people are laughing, they don't necessarily realize until they stop laughing that they just took something in that's going to start a conversation.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Comedy can help people engage with serious topics in a more approachable way.
Kenya Barris highlights the power of comedy as a tool for addressing serious issues. By using humor, audiences can absorb challenging concepts without the immediate weight of their gravity, allowing laughter to create a bridge to deeper conversations once the humor fades.
Themes
ComedyHumorConversationSerious IssuesLaughter
In practice
Example use cases
Using this quote while discussing the role of comedy in social commentary during a workshop.
More from Kenya Barris
All quotes →I've found that the more honest and true you are and can talk about a character and people's experiences, it's less ostracizing. It actually has the opposite effect than one would think. It makes the characters and the story more inclusive.
Kenya BarrisRead
Similar quotes
I left school and couldn't find acting work, so I started going to clubs where you could do stand-up. I've always improvised, and stand-up was this great release. All of a sudden, it was just me and the audience.
Robin WilliamsRead
"Fussy eater" is a euphemism for "big pain in the ass."
George CarlinRead
No sinner is ever saved after the first twenty minutes of a sermon.
Mark TwainRead
All Congresses and Parliaments have a kindly feeling for idiots, and a compassion for them, on account of personal experience and heredity.
Mark TwainRead
Rugby is a good occasion for keeping thirty bullies far from the center of the city.
Oscar WildeRead
I go to dance clubs...about once a year just to justify the other 364 days I spend in my apartment going 'God, what idiots!'
Bill HicksRead