Doesn't Read Funny, Either

Funny, You Don't Look Funny: Judaism and Humor from the Silent Generation to Millennials by Jennifer Caplan (Detroit, MI: Wayne State University Press, 2023)

A former colleague, who is an academic librarian, likes to send me titles of comedy books I might like while he does his collection development.  This title was intriguing, so I requested it from a local library.  It was a slim volume (175 pages), unlike other academic books I've seen, and couldn't wait to dive it.  I was very disappointed.  I wasn't expecting that this book would be "ha-ha" funny as it was a serious look at the subject, but what can you say about a book that has endnotes that are more informative and readable than the actual work?

Caplan's (PhD) book is about Jewish authors and how they use their Judaism (or aversion of it) to humorous effect in their works.  A good portion of her book is focused on Woody Allen, Phillip Roth, and Joseph Heller.  She makes a sincere attempt at identifying the generations - Silent, Baby Boomers, Gen X, and Millennials - by their sensibilities about Judaism rather than just by birth years. This creates muddy waters because she points out some writers overlap generations but their sensibilities aren't any different. The gist is that earlier generations of Jews in America see Judaism as a "Thing," something that was thrust upon them that engenders derision and discomfort.  It is something to be escaped.  Later generations, particularly Gen X and especially Millennials, are much more comfortable with Judaism and being Jewish and see it as part of what makes them who they are, as illustrated by Ilana Glazer and Abby Jacobson (Broad City) and Rachel Bloom (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend).  It is interesting to note that women writers embrace their Judaism and Jewishness more warmly than the male authors, like Shalom Auslander. (The after-effects of circumcision, maybe?)  

For a comic interested in joke structure and the origins of what people have found funny and why, there's not much here.  I get the feeling that Caplan is much more familiar with Millennial culture than any other because it is here and now.  She makes a couple of errors in her book that should've been caught by her editor,  A glaring one is that she states that "George Costanza" was based on Jason Alexander when nearly ever article and interview about the show pinpoint Seinfeld co-creater Larry David as his inspiration.  And David does not deny it.  The saving grace of this book is this section on Millennials and would be a great jumping off point for a book about Millennial humor.  (On a personal note:  I've already been told by my Millennial daughter and her Gen X husband that jokes that put down spouses are dinosaurs  because this is "the first generation that actually loves their spouses."  Really?  Forgive them.  They haven't been married long enough yet.  I kid!  I kid!)

Matt Groening, the creator of "The Simpsons" and "Futurama" -  and a gentile, summed up the heart of Jewish humor - at least to me - best.  He once said in an interview about the main difference between the two shows is that the former is an example of "Irish humor" where a man tries to put one over on his family/friends and suffers the consequences, and the latter is "Jewish humor," where the characters shrug philosophically and say "Whatcha gonna do?"

Sorry, Jennifer.  Whatcha gonna do?