“Bury, Burn Or Dump”: Black Humour in the Late Twentieth Century
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“BURY, BURN OR DUMP”: BLACK HUMOUR IN THE LATE TWENTIETH CENTURY KRISTEN A. MURRAY A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of New South Wales School of Media, Theatre & Film and School of Sociology Sydney, NSW, Australia September 2007 Abstract In humour studies research, there have been few attempts to elucidate why black humour was such a prevalent, powerful force in late twentieth century culture and why it continues to make a profound impression in the new millennium. As Dana Polan (1991) laments: “Rarely have there been attempts to offer material, historically specific explanations of particular manifestations of the comic”.1 This thesis offers an interdisciplinary analysis of black humour in the late twentieth century. I contend that the experience of black humour emerges from the intricacies of human beliefs and behaviours surrounding death and through the diverse rituals that shape experiences of loss. I suggest that black humour is an attempt to articulate the tension between the haunting absence and disturbing presence of death in contemporary society. Chapter 1 of this thesis offers an historical and etymological perspective on black humour. In Chapter 2, I argue that the increasing privatisation and medicalisation of death, along with the overt mediatisation of death, creates a problematic juxtaposition. I contend that these unique social conditions created, and continue to foster, an ideal environment for the creation and proliferation of black humour. In Chapters 3 and 4, I examine the structures and functions of black humour through three key theories of humour: incongruity, catharsis and superiority. Chapter 5 looks at ways in which the experience of black humour creates resolutions and forces dissonances for people entwined with loss. In this final chapter, I also consider how black humour may help people make meaning from issues surrounding death. Throughout this theoretical discussion, I interweave the analysis of a range of scenes from contemporary black comic texts (i.e. plays, screenplays and television scripts). On the whole, this thesis works towards a more complex, specific understanding of the phenomenon of black humour within a social context. 1 Polan, Dana 1991, ‘The Light Side of Genius: Hitchcock’s Mr. and Mrs. Smith in the Screwball Tradition’ in Comedy/Cinema/Theory, Andrew Horton (Ed.), University of California Press, Los Angeles, pp. 131-152. i Acknowledgments I offer my sincere gratitude to those who have encouraged, inspired, cajoled, rallied and supported me during the decade it took to complete this thesis. Thank you. To my mother Gail Murray and grandmother Marjorie Fought, for their unwavering, energetic, affectionate encouragement. To my father Patrick Murray and brother Gregory Murray, for their constant, accepting, caring support. To my sister Erin Murray, whose severe disabilities and joyous resilience sparked my interest in black humour. To my extended family – Joe Hawes, Sarah DuVall Murray, Barbara Fought, Chuck Fought Jr. and Nelson Price, as well as Fran, Laurence, Chris, Catherine and Gabrielle Mulcahy – for their warm, thoughtful interest in my work. To those who are no longer living but who supported my endeavours: Clara and Woody Murray, Chuck Fought Sr., Jane Murray and Laura Jones. To my supervisors John McCallum, Jim Davis, Mira Crouch and Philip Bell for taking an active interest in this thesis. A special thanks to Mira for her thoughtful, insightful input and to Philip for his humour and dedication in bringing the project to fruition; I am grateful for your guidance. To Jessica Milner Davis for her continuous support of my enthusiasm for humour studies. To my friend Julia Mant, who cheerfully proofread the penultimate draft, provided formatting resources and offered encouragement over the past several years. To my friends in Australia and in the United States, who have listened patiently to stories of academia, expressed genuine interest in my thesis and accepted my periods of hermetic existence. To the writers, directors and performers who have made me laugh over the years, in the hopes that you keep sharing your gift. To the scholars whose work led the way in the field of humour studies, allowing others of us to develop our fascination with this phenomenon. To my dear husband and best friend, Nicholas Mulcahy, who enriches my life every day. I adore you and I could not have finished this thesis without you. And finally, to the baby who has been with me most of this year and who we will soon welcome into the world. Thank you for the perspective you bring, little one.* * Augustine is here and is the joy of our lives. ii Dedication To my family: remembered, present and forthcoming. iii Table of Contents Page Number Prologue 1 Chapter 1 6 Defining Black Humour Chapter 2 42 Depicting Death in a Contemporary Context Chapter 3 86 Collisions, Reversals and Repetitions: Structures in Black Comedy Chapter 4 144 Contusions, Ruptures and Dislocations: Functions of Black Humour Chapter 5 198 Resolutions and Dissonances: Making Meaning from Black Humour Bibliography 228 iv Conventions I use Australian standard spelling throughout this thesis, even within quotes from American texts that use different spelling in the original. Within the Bibliography, I maintain the original spelling in all aspects of the citations. I have used consistent capitalisation in the titles of articles, books and other resources. For citations, I use the Harvard method (2002, 6th edition) with particular reference to the accepted standards of universities in Australia. In the body of the text, I use the modern format for referencing (Smith, 2000: 301) and (Smith 2000, Alma 1996) instead of the more formal style (Smith, 2000, p. 301) and (Smith, 2000; Alma, 1996). For reprinted and translated texts, I list the year of publication of the edition I referenced in the thesis, not the original year of publication. I maintain the punctuation, spelling and format within all excerpts from scripts. When providing excerpts from plays or screenplays, I refer to the corresponding page number, act or scene in the published text. When providing excerpts from films or television programs for which the original screenplay is not available, I refer to the production itself, from which dialogue has been transcribed. I provide both the year(s) of cinematic release or television broadcast and the year of DVD release. I use single quotes to draw attention to, or problematise, the definitions of certain words or phrases. I generally do not use single quotes on subsequent applications of the same term, except in the etymological discussion in Chapter 1. I apply the present tense to the discussion of texts from all time periods, regardless of whether the writer is living or deceased. (I take this approach because the past tense reduces flexibility and gives permanency to particular interpretations.) I do not alter the verb tense within quotations of any type unless the change is indicated in brackets. In reference to scholars, I use the surname only. In reference to writers (i.e. playwrights and screenwriters) of artistic works, I use the first name and surname on the first reference, then surname only thereafter. For ease of access, the Endnotes are provided at the conclusion of each chapter. v List of Texts In this thesis, I analyse a range of texts that I believe exemplify contemporary black comedy. These works emanate from theatre, film and television in the years 1970 to 2001. Preface: • Monty Python – Graham Chapman et. al. Chapter 1: – Chapter 2: • M*A*S*H – Ring Lardner, Jr. • Pulp Fiction – Quentin Tarantino Chapter 3: • The Lonesome West – Martin McDonagh • Fargo – Ethan Coen and Joel Coen • Six Feet Under – Alan Ball et. al. • Funny Bones – Peter Chesholm and Peter Flannery • Three Days of Rain – Richard Greenberg • Absent Friends – Alan Ayckbourn • Weekend at Bernie’s – Robert Klane • Loot – Joe Orton • The Memory of Water – Shelagh Stephenson • The Precious Woman – Louis Nowra • Weekend at Bernie’s – Robert Klane • Loot – Joe Orton • Waking Ned Devine – Kirk Jones • Absolutely Fabulous – Jennifer Saunders • Groundhog Day – Scott Rubin and Harold Ramis • Better Off Dead – Savage Steve Holland • Harold and Maude – Colin Higgins Chapter 4: • Crimes of the Heart – Beth Henley • Radiance – Louis Nowra • The Memory of Water - Shelagh Stephenson • Absurd Person Singular – Alan Ayckbourn • W;t – Margaret Edson • Angles in America – Tony Kushner • Season’s Greetings – Alan Ayckbourn • Out of Sight – Scott Frank • Raised in Captivity – Nicky Silver • Fred – Beatrix Christian • The Big Lebowski – Ethan Coen • Last Orders – Fred Schepisi, from the novel by Graham Swift List of Texts continued Chapter 5: • A Skull in Connemara – Martin McDonagh • Traveling North – David Williamson vi • Monk – David Breckman • The John Wayne Principle – Tony McNamara vii Prologue In a dark comic sketch from Monty Python’s Flying Circus, a bereaved man enters a funeral home. He inquires about the services of the establishment because his mother has just passed away. “Well,” the undertaker says calmly. “We can help you. We deal with stiffs” (Chapman et al. 1989). The grieving customer assumes he has misunderstood, so he asks again if the funeral home staff can assist. UNDERTAKER: Well, there are three things we can do with your Mum. We can bury her, burn her or dump her. MAN: Dump her? UNDERTAKER: In the Thames. MAN: What? UNDERTAKER: Oh, did you like her? MAN: Yes! UNDERTAKER: Oh well, we won’t dump her then. What do you think? We can bury her or burn her. MAN: Well, which do you recommend? UNDERTAKER: Well, they’re both nasty. If we burn her she gets stuffed in the flames, crackle, crackle, crackle, which is a bit of a shock if she’s not quite dead, but quick. Then we give you a handful of ashes, which you can pretend were hers.