I’ve already written about my dislike of Slate’s Double X (and more specifically it’s offensive byline “What women really think about news, politics, and culture”).
And today they posted a review of Tina Fey’s book Bossypants. And I had one of my mini rage moments. Because you know, I love Fey. I don’t need Slate’s approval of the book to know that it is likely to be good. But then they go and write stuff like this:
You see, some of us have forgotten this basic point: Responding to a situation with humor, as opposed to, say, dead-serious self-righteousness, is a rhetorically effective way to get a political point across.
or this:
Her attitude is not resentment or simmering or a boring, ordinary, low-grade victimhood, but rather a more accurate and nuanced portrait of the modern working woman.
Because you know, when faced with discrimination or sexism or any kind of violence, you should laugh and laugh and laugh instead of being dead serious, self righteous or *gasp* god forbids, boring.
What upset me about the review is the assumption that it only takes humor. Moreover, Fey’s kind of humor because:
And by humor, I don’t mean the automatic-pilot snideness, or contentless cattiness, or jealous innuendo, or ironic jibberish that sometimes passes for humor in certain parts of the Internet and Internet-influenced culture. I am referring to Fey’s complex, spirited, intelligent kind of funniness
Anything else, of course, is not appropriate. Serious political discourse be damned. Snark and satire borne out of frustration are obviously not worthy of attention. Silly jokes or crude humor? Queue the high pitch “BUT YOU ARE A LADY!”.
You know what, Slate? I fart in your general direction.
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