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Halloween is less than a week away and we can't help think about the dark side of fairy tales as they reflect us today, but it's easy to deal with fairy tales re-framed as horror. It's when we reframe them to laugh at them wryly we realize they are hit a little close to home and that makes for it's own sort of scary. There's a lot that could be said about fairy tale humor that takes a turn for the "eek". Many of these, while immediately funny, tend to leave you feeling slightly uncomfortable with the drop or more of truth they contain. Perfect for Halloween when we're facing our fears. We could write about how humor helps us deal with fear and process difficult situations but there are specialists who would do a much better job than we could. Folklorists would also have a lot to say about each of these panels if you find one handy to ask, so if they get your brain working, you know you're in good company, but rather than bore you with theory we'll just leave these single-panel comics for you to chuckle over, and perhaps have some other thoughts as well... (*cue X-Files music*)
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| by Harry Bliss |
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| by John Atkinson |
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| by Dan Piraro |
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| by Dan Piraro |
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| by John Deering |
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| by Dan Piraro |
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| by Maria Scrivan |
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by Mark Parisi
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| by Wayno & Piraro |
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| by Dan Piraro |
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| by Wayno |
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| by Scott Hilburn |
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| by Mark Parisi |
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| by Mark Parisi |
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| by Mike Peters |
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| by John Deering |
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| by Bill Abbott |
Resources On Humor and Facing Fears:
- Of Corpse: Death and Humor in Folkore and Popular Culture by Peter Narvaez 2003 (digital download available at link) Link to Amazon to purchase copy is HERE.
- The Celebration of Death in Contemporary Culture by Dina Khapaeva 2017 (not just about humor but very helpful on contemporary views on Halloween, monsters, fear and death - links to Amazon
- "The Celebration of Death in Contemporary Culture investigates the emergence and meaning of the cult of death. Over the last three decades, Halloween has grown to rival Christmas in its popularity. Dark tourism has emerged as a rapidly expanding industry. “Corpse chic” and “skull style” have entered mainstream fashion, while elements of gothic, horror, torture porn, and slasher movies have streamed into more conventional genres. Monsters have become pop culture heroes: vampires, zombies, and serial killers now appeal broadly to audiences of all ages. This book breaks new ground by viewing these phenomena as aspects of a single movement and documenting its development in contemporary Western culture."
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