Some Comments to Make Us Laugh In his essay 'Television Insults Men Too', Goldberg argues that television insults

both men and women. It would not be uite true to say that I agree with him. !ather I would say that ridi"uling men and women on T# serves the $ur$ose o% entertaining the audien"e and the insulting "oments should not be taken too seriously. Goldberg illustrates his $oint o% view that there are insulting and even dis"riminatory "omments on television with two e&am$les o% two 'meri"an sit("oms. )ne o% them is 'Married with Children', a show in whi"h all the "hara"ters are ridi"ulous, or at least very s$e"ial. The %ather is a la*y and "lumsy big man, the mother is a materialisti" rather immature lady and their daughter is a seventeen(year(old girl who is irres$onsible and rather dumb. 'lthough it is true that the "hara"ters usually insult ea"h other, I donot believe that their aim is to dis"riminate. I think that the $ur$ose o% the show is to make the audien"e laugh and making "omments on human de%e"ts is only $art o% the show. The same ha$$ens with the sit("om '!oseanne'. The main "hara"ter is !oseanne +arr, a uite moody and bossy $lum$ woman. 'gain, the "omments she makes about her husband and "hildren are %ar %rom being dis"riminatory, in my o$inion. I believe that i% these shows did not make ,okes about human de%e"ts $erha$s they would not be so su""ess%ul. -hat ha$$ens I think, is that we like laughing at our de%e"ts and T# shows show them, although sometimes e&aggeratedly. In these shows we see ourselves or others and that is what makes us laugh not the %a"t that there are a bun"h o% $eo$le insulting ea"h other on T#. -e may identi%y ourselves with the "hara"ters or with what the "hara"ters say about somebody or something and that is %unny. Insulting "omments on T# should not be taken so seriously. )n"e we learn to laugh at our de%e"ts we "an rela& and take those "omments only as tools that "omedians use to make us have a good laugh. Catalina Trousdell