Warning

This post will include examples of dark jokes so beware,

This has been a topic that always been a part of my life as a wannabe comedian currently doing his best work to the man in the mirror. Dark jokes, shock jokes, offensive jokes -don't worry I am not about to list them all like George Carlin- are a type of jokes mocking something serious - be it directly or indirectly. It is really hard to differentiate the exact type of jokes I am trying to talk about. so let me set the example: I once went to my girlfriend's mother's funeral and there I said "I guess now we know what will stop her from insulting me", think something like a 9/11 joke, holocaust jokes, basically think of anything that about which there can't be any jokes, that what would be what I mean.

It is not personal

This may be applicable to all type of jokes, but these jokes aren't personal. They are - much like all jokes - more about seeing what the late Patrice O'Neal describes as "The Funny" in anything. Simple as that, it is not about you, it is a knee jerk reaction "Well, you should outgrow it", sorry but no. self-expression freedom when facing traumatic events is just SELF-expression, it is even something that comes from a painful place rather than a vengeful or hateful one. Yes, you have the right to hate it and even think it is appropriate but it is also doesn't make a person worst for expressing it.

It is more complicated than you might think

Do you know what is the first think that perceives holocaust jokes? Knowledge about what the holocaust is. You would be surprised by how much information you could learn from a holocaust jokes, for example "How many Jews can you fit in a car? 3 in the back, 2 in the front, and 6 millions in the ashtray", now let me ask you a question, how many Jews were killed during World War 2? You see, one of the facts I grew up knowing without even reading about World War 2 is the fact that six million Jews died during it and that they died burning. It is a heavy process but humor is just another way to read/remember things dark humor.

I could name series of studies of how dark sense of humor is a sign of Intelligence and intellect to show how your sense of humor is basically the same however your subject of matter simply deepens, resulting in your sense of humor coming off as "getting darker" but the fact of the matter it is just your interest changing.

It is a way to cope

I know this one sounds like just an excuse but it is a fact that people receive news differently and handle them differently. Think of punching a wall, breaking down, locking oneself in a room for days. There are plenty of "Unhealthy" ways to deal with something, why is a dark sense of humor most demonized? While all the rest call for a nicer consideration.

Think of it this way: Imagine a shock of a certain type of news, be it personal or just something out in the world, whether a bombing, a celebrity's death, or any other horrible event, as standing on the roof of building, some people just jump right away into the sadness, others, would rather walk down slowly in it. We use dark humor as a sort of a rope that downs us into the other steps of the Kübler-Ross model (AKA the five stages of grief), it is our form of denial. It is not denial of the event itself but rather our feelings about it.

It is an admission of the seriousness of the matter

Now this may come off strange, but the main component of dark jokes is the shock value. You are shocked by the fact that a joke was made at such a serious topic, which is the very goal of the joke therefore the joke itself is an admission of the seriousness of the matter yet a reminder that you can still laugh.

They are informative

Now, this one is my play-court. If you have followed me through the last two years you must have seen couple of those around. One in specific comes to mind in the form of my first ever Curie author showcase article. In which I talk about addiction to porn, its harm to social life, family life, its contribution to depression and suicide. The dark reality isn't attractive to talk about, I could have thrown stats, experts opinions and called it a day but comedy makes some things easier to digest and contrary to popular belief, it doesn't lessen its impact.

Comedy is always about taking a chance

Why do you think comedians take years usually to come out with a special? Why don't they just write one, film it, and air it every week? There is never a perfect time of when it is okay to laugh, and I don't remember a meeting about which subjects we could laugh. The process is simple, thought of something, found it funny, figured you could laugh as well, that is all. There are jokes done with malicious intents, but those are not the ones in question.

Laughing about the same things is boring, and there aren't many "safe" matters to joke about, that if any. So every now and then a risk is required

You are right to hate them

Following the footsteps of the God of comedy George Carlin "Nothing is sacred", that is the comedy mentality in many times. Patrice O'Neal constantly made fun of his diabetes while admiring that it will cause his death, a prophecy that proved true. A comedian jokes about everything, including their own death. So whatever you hold sacred isn't sacred to everyone else as well. With that said, the subject is still sacred to YOU and that makes it okay to hate certain type of jokes, be it for the style, the subject, or even the timing. Being offended isn't a virtue, but it is a right.