The Double-Edged Knife of Humour in Indonesia - Dakwah and Religious Blasphemy
Religion and Senses of Humour - Stephen E. Gregg
Yuangga Kurnia Yahya [+]
University of Darussalam Gontor, Indonesia
Description
Humor cannot be separated from social reality. In the incongruity theory, it is stated that humor functions as a social control, and mocking stereotyping and prejudice. The community's sensitivity to the incongruity in society’s religious life can trigger expressions in the form of humor and comedy. On the one hand, the expression of dissatisfaction with the socio-religious reality in the form of comedy that can be agitated from religious blasphemy. This can be seen in the period 2018-2020, where there were many accusations of blasphemy in the appearance of stand-up comedy. On the other hand, this anxiety can be a means of preaching (dakwah). Preaching by this issue is very popular with the people because it is close to the their social reality. This study aims to see how the same anxiety and discomfort can be conveyed with different expressions in different contexts which can lead to various responses. The perspective used is a pragmatic-discourse analysis. This can be seen from the discourse that is presented in humor which is conveyed through two contexts, the context of the joke and the context in the jokes. The object of this research is a comedy treat that contains people's discomfort about religious life, religious fanaticism, and religious teachings. The discourse will be classified into humor which are laughing at religious teachings or laughing at the behavior of religious people. In this research, it is hoped that the parameters of offense for religious communities in Indonesia can be compiled. This is also to place a discourse in a suitable context to minimize offense. This parameter is important in order to maintain the continuity of religious harmony in Indonesia.