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2011•TOPIA Canadian Journal of Cultural StudiesRequires access

The Cultural Critique of Gender Parody in Canadian Sketch Comedy

Danielle J. Deveau

Open publisher page 5 citations

Abstract

This article considers the performance of Canadian masculinity in sketch comedy. In particular I consider the characters Buddy Cole (The Kids in the Hall), Red Green (The Red Green Show), and Raj Binder (This Hour Has 22 Minutes). These characters offer Canadian audiences unique parodies of nostalgic conceptions of Canadian masculinity. Using camp and gender parody, the above-mentioned comedians deconstruct popular mythologies about masculinity and Canadian-ness. These portrayals are at one and the same time both critical and optimistic—a paradox that works its way through much of Canadian popular culture.

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What this paper is about

This article considers the performance of Canadian masculinity in sketch comedy. In particular I consider the characters Buddy Cole (The Kids in the Hall), Red Green (The Red Green Show), and Raj Binder (This Hour Has 22 Minutes). These characters offer Canadian audiences unique parodies of nostalgic conceptions of Canadian masculinity. Using camp and gender parody, the above-mentioned comedians deconstruct popular mythologies about masculinity and Canadian-ness. These portrayals are at one and the same time both critical and optimistic—a paradox that works its way through much of Canadian popular culture.

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OpenAlex reports 5 citations for this work. Citation counts describe recorded attention and do not establish research quality.

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Available abstract

This article considers the performance of Canadian masculinity in sketch comedy. In particular I consider the characters Buddy Cole (The Kids in the Hall), Red Green (The Red Green Show), and Raj Binder (This Hour Has 22 Minutes). These characters offer Canadian audiences unique parodies of nostalgic conceptions of Canadian masculinity. Using camp and gender parody, the above-mentioned comedians deconstruct popular mythologies about masculinity and Canadian-ness. These portrayals are at one and the same time both critical and optimistic—a paradox that works its way through much of Canadian popular culture.

Key concepts: Masculinity, Comedy, Sketch, Mythology, Sociology, Aesthetics, Gender studies, Art

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