ABSTRACT
This chapter explains whether humour operates as liberation or control. It presents the interpersonal aspects of humour. The chapter shows that the use of parody as means of challenging existing ideologies. It suggests that how fan fiction subverts power or authority. The chapter also suggests that humour is ambiguous between being a force for liberation and resistance or as a means of domination, relating this to selective theories of humour. It looks at how visual parodies, especially in public spaces, function to debunk dominant societal discourses or ideologies while at the same end up promoting a particular kind of ideology. The discussion of parody also prepares for a discussion of fan fiction, much of which is parodic. The chapter considers another potential weapon for challenging authority: humour. Black comedians can get away with anti-black jokes that would be thought racist in a white person's mouth, especially if the audience are also black.
