As I watched the Hannah Gadsby special, “Nanette”, in class, I had to take a second to evaluate all of the information that she had given to us. Even though she was a gay woman, I felt as though there were themes that could resonate with anybody. She had a way of performing that could truly hit you exactly where she wanted it to. All of her struggles seemed to be painted within the laughs and punchlines throughout the show to eventually give evidence to the final half. Her messaged at the end seemed to be clear. She did not want to spread hate or anger, just awareness that people experience traumatic experiences from other people. She wanted a change. “Nanette” inspired me to want a change. Not only for the “different” but for the ones that blend in. Whether you are straight, gay, black, white, male, female, etc. everybody needs help.
It’s a shame that many men feel as though they can’t be the victim in an abusive relationship just because of their gender or that a black individual must keep their voice down to be heard. The world should learn to accept the problems of any person in order to create awareness. Gay individuals should feel less shame from sharing their assault stories in order to give themselves power. I’m sure that “Nanette” changed more lives than just mine and will continue to do so. We must thank the progressive individuals like Hannah that become the catalyst for change in society.
My heart goes out to the people that have affected by the ignorance or hatred of another. I had never heard about internalized homophobia before Gadsby’s special and opened my eyes to similar concepts. Do other groups of individuals through this too? How many people are in pain from how society views them? I could not imagine the toles that it takes to get through every day as somebody who hates themselves. I think a solution to these issues lies with Gadsby and the other amazing humans that share their stories. People are able to feel noticed and understood when they hear somebody living the same life. They sacrifice their privacy to bring reassurance to the lives of many and that is truly something to pay tribute to.
Before this show I too had never heard of internalized homophobia. She kept reminding us throughout the show about how where she grew up had criminalized being gay for over seventy years. I didn't even think about her age, and how she had grown up in Tasmania during that time, or how that would affect someone who is gay. At least not until she told us. Then I couldn't stop thinking about it. Society has a serious issue they need to fix, about shaming people for their sexual preference. Especially since we've seen how damaging it can be to someone's mental health.
ReplyDeleteI agree. I’m one of the people that was sitting in the room, happy that someone had the guts to say the things that I did not. She is an influencer as well as a comedian. I also think it is a shame that people, myself included, have to walk around in fear or shame. What sticks with me the most is that story of her mom when her mom said, “I wanted you to change because I knew the world would not.” Well then world needs to change. People shouldn’t be walking around in fear any longer.
ReplyDeleteCan blogger get a retweet-like function? Because I could use it about now to just retweet the comments above. I completely agree with Daisy and Brittany. Nanette really spoke a lot of things which needed to be heard and doing it in a comedic setting really lightened it up to be digestible. I am sure some people out there could argue that comedy is not a place to talk about such heavy issues, but I think it was such a powerful thing to do and such a powerful way to do it.
ReplyDeleteI think it is important that we give a space to share our traumas so we can work through them. Gadsby's special probably helped a lot of people find their voice for whatever it is they had to work through. I know most people left feeling empowered but I actually felt a little frustrated. This was such a moving comedy special, and it makes you want to change things, yet nothing has been changed. It has been 3 years and everything is still the same. Sure, there are some small victories but overall women are still dealing with the same shit. It is so frustrating! I loved this special but I do not love where we are at as a society, and that makes me angry.
ReplyDeleteYes, I completely agree to what you are saying. Everybody already said it all in the comments but I'll say it again. Hannah is an influencer with a comedic spice to her. She does acknowledge the things people don't talk about but should talk about. I agree, I agree, I agree! Great Job!
ReplyDeleteThis was exactly the post I wanted to write this week but you did it better than I ever could have. I've never seen a comic open up like that and I really think she has the potential to have a great influence on comedy.
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