I wanted to try my hand at what Pete had started in this post awhile back: http://bit.ly/bvHNlH. (Side note. It is unbelievably difficult to get a clean, black circle around a graphic when you're using the Paint program.)
My reaction to these two I recently posted, the Family Circus caption atop an image from Jersey Shore, is the same that I had to Pete's post. And that is that I think it just doesn't work as well. The immediate, visceral reaction one gets to Dolly or Jeffy making overtly sexual, crass or cynical statements allows for a consistent reading of the text. I know to brace myself for a small child saying what a small child shouldn't, and that that IS the punchline. We connect to a love for entropy, indecency, self-discovery, ignoring cultural norms, empowerment, etc. We eat it up.
With the reverse, there is less to go on. With this format, knowing each individual context is essential for comprehension. If you haven't ever watched Jersey Shore, as I have not, there are few cues other than a scant grasp on pop culture to help my understanding of the situation. (The situation. haha.) Sure, there is something childish being expressed by this wildly tan sexpot(?) of a woman, but there is little shock value. She is being asanine, but I mean, so was my sister at the breakfast table this morning. It's old hat.
And CERTAINLY, the mushy-peas dialogue of the Family Circus is nothing if not forgettable. For each of these captions, I had to pick only small bits of the original to make it work. Worth it? Probably not. But I will probably try it a few more times to keep my edge.
While the juxtaposition you normally use is always great, this is not awful. But the quicker impact of the visual, to my eye, trumps reading the text. So I had to work backward here. Still found it funny, tho.
SELF-CRITIQUE!
ReplyDeleteI wanted to try my hand at what Pete had started in this post awhile back: http://bit.ly/bvHNlH. (Side note. It is unbelievably difficult to get a clean, black circle around a graphic when you're using the Paint program.)
My reaction to these two I recently posted, the Family Circus caption atop an image from Jersey Shore, is the same that I had to Pete's post. And that is that I think it just doesn't work as well. The immediate, visceral reaction one gets to Dolly or Jeffy making overtly sexual, crass or cynical statements allows for a consistent reading of the text. I know to brace myself for a small child saying what a small child shouldn't, and that that IS the punchline. We connect to a love for entropy, indecency, self-discovery, ignoring cultural norms, empowerment, etc. We eat it up.
With the reverse, there is less to go on. With this format, knowing each individual context is essential for comprehension. If you haven't ever watched Jersey Shore, as I have not, there are few cues other than a scant grasp on pop culture to help my understanding of the situation. (The situation. haha.) Sure, there is something childish being expressed by this wildly tan sexpot(?) of a woman, but there is little shock value. She is being asanine, but I mean, so was my sister at the breakfast table this morning. It's old hat.
And CERTAINLY, the mushy-peas dialogue of the Family Circus is nothing if not forgettable. For each of these captions, I had to pick only small bits of the original to make it work. Worth it? Probably not. But I will probably try it a few more times to keep my edge.
What do YOU think?
-Liz
Agreed. It's nowhere near as funny this way.
ReplyDeleteHah. Anonymous has much fewer words than you do, Liz.
ReplyDeleteyou can't fix what isn't broken
ReplyDeleteYeah...stick with the regular format....did not really find this funny.
ReplyDeleteWhile the juxtaposition you normally use is always great, this is not awful. But the quicker impact of the visual, to my eye, trumps reading the text. So I had to work backward here. Still found it funny, tho.
ReplyDelete