Tuesday, April 22, 2008
The Black Addams Family
Posted by: lain // Category: Good Questions, Historical Quagmires, Storytelling, Tar Baby, This is awkward // 1:43 pm
A few months ago, the folks at Sketchworks Comedy asked us if they could use the Wren’s Nest to film a sketch that would play during their live show. We’re pretty cool, so of course we said yes.
The sketch was the Black Addams Family, and it’s just now online–
Given that I like what’s funny and that Joel Chandler Harris is an author whose work has sometimes been called stereotypical and racist, I found the premise of the Black Addams Family at the Wren’s Nest remarkably intriguing.
It’s also really well done. Compare it to the original version, and I think you’ll be impressed–
What made the Black Addams Family even more interesting was a bit of conversation I overheard between some of the cast members who were taking a break. They were talking about the Wren’s Nest–
“Isn’t this place racist or something?”
“I don’t know. I think they’ve got a bunch of tar babies running around.”
The Black Addams Family is a parody that relies on two things: (1) the creepy house that happens to be the home of Joel Chandler Harris and (2) racial stereotypes being funny.
Ironically, it was exactly this type of humor, often used in the 19th century by white writers, that Joel Chandler Harris sought to avoid.
Many writers who wrote stories involving blacks relied on stereotypes through overwrought dialect or blackface-like presentations. (The enormous difference between that and the Black Addams Family is that this time black folks are, of course, in on the jokes.)
Joel Chandler Harris, meanwhile, distanced himself from his peers by presenting a black protagonist, Uncle Remus, in a way that was respectful and meticulously faithful to African American folklore.
For example, when Uncle Remus tells the little boy the story of the great deluge and the little boy mentions Noah, Remus explains that Noah isn’t in the story. It’s significant that Remus doesn’t conform to the Noah’s Ark story accepted by white America–he gives legitimacy to his own, African American version of the story.
This kind of cultural equality was, suffice to say, somewhat rare in the southern United States during the 19th century.
One hundred years later, Harris is often confused with his peers who mostly relied on stereotypes for yuks, and his (along with Uncle Remus’) reputation has suffered.
It’s kinda complicated, but I think that there are three morals here–
- Go see Sketchworks in Decatur.
- Historically, Joel Chandler Harris hasn’t had great marketing.
- When you’re holding a bucket of KFC, a fake illegitimate child, and the afro pick for Cousin It’s hair, it may be the absolute best time to discuss racism. Or maybe it’s the worst. There’s not much in between.
I’m just sayin’.
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