Russell Peters’ Comedy: Style and Significance

Russell Peters, a native of Toronto, came to prominence as one of the most well-known figures in stand-up comedy. Despite the fact that few people are familiar with him, his brand of humor has seen him become one of the best names in comedy. In this light, it is worthwhile to investigate the distinguishing features of Russell's humor.

Russell Peters' Comedy: Its Style and Importance

Russell's humor is distinguished by narration and numerous episodes from his youth. He has a good rapport with the first row of the crowd. He explores and mocks the misconceptions that are attributed to various classes of people. For example, some sections of the North American society believe that children born in Indian families are encouraged to take “heavy” courses such as medicine and engineering, and Russell makes fun out of such stereotypes.

Beyond comedy, Russell Peters has been proactive in highlighting various issues affecting the society. For example, he was not surprised that Harvey Weinstein, the Holly Wood producer, was accused of sexual assault. Peters had met Weinstein and he is happy that Weinstein, as the bully he is, has gotten bullied too.

Russell’s fan base is diverse as Hirji (para 1) notes,

Peters, a Canadian of South Asian descent, has an extensive, ethnically diverse fan base around the world.

In connection to this, Russell’s comedy is saturated with ethnic-biased humor. The comedian imitates certain racial groups though some may not be comfortable with a radicalized comedy discourse. The rationale behind this is addressing stereotypes through exposing them. Perez says, laughing at others is a form of boundary construction (Perez 514).

So influential is Russell that he has dominated the socialization process among young people. In fact, some years back, people who never watched him were regarded as “not cool enough.” Manivannan (20), says,

The craze was aided by the fact that Russell Peters gave all the sissy boys a means to show off their dudism to girls.

Character

Russell Peters is not a consistent character in that he assumes various roles depending on the situation. What is surprising about him is his ability to adapt to different environments. However, it is worth noting that most of his jokes fall under what is known as plausible realism. They are not overly absurd or unbelievable.

According to Stebbins (3), one of the most significant features of stand-up comedy is the ability to take it as an art, as a commercial opportunity, and as a lifestyle. When a comedian takes comedy as an art, he is able to inject creativity into everyday phenomena. Again, when he takes it as a commercial opportunity, he is able to analyze his target audience based on various variables such as age and race in order to optimize his income. And when the comedian takes comedy as a lifestyle, it flows naturally. Stebbins explains stand-up comedy and says,

Often, verbal content is augmented with a range of theoretical establishments such as special costumes and props, grunts, snorts, and howls, bodily movements, and facial gestures.

Argumentative Appeals: Ethos

Aristotle coined three main methods of persuading the audience: ethos, logos, and pathos.

The term ethos is a Greek word meaning character. Russell uses ethos to show that his comedy is backed by credible sources and is worthy of being listened to. In addition to that, he not only uses unbiased jokes but also In this regard, Russell does not shy away from laughing at anyone including himself and his own community. He says thus:

I've seen racism in my audiences. For example, I've seen people laugh at every other group, but then clam up when it comes to their community. You can't laugh at everyone else and then not laugh at yourself. You shouldn't be at my show if you can't laugh at yourself.

Pathos

Russell Peters awakens several passions among his audiences. In Greek language, the word pathos means either suffering or experience. Comedians adopt pathos in order to make an appeal to the emotions of the audience either through pity or through anger. The comedian is a master when it comes to cultural lampoons. He is able to poke fun at everyone, himself included.

Russell Peters is able to awaken passions that come from the various stereotypes that exist in the society. Asked if he does not regret steering stereotypes, he says that he just exposes the stereotypes. His fans have credited him for the belief that he can initiate the point of intersection between cultures. He does this through exposing the various barriers that exist.

Logos

Russell Peters has been able to create a great impression of himself. The Greek word logos means reason or logic. Comedians often use statistics, facts, and an authority. The fact that such jokes are presented in the lightest way possible does not negate their authority in the society. For example, Russell Peters takes a jab at the theories of international relations and their point of convergence to business and says in a joke:

Chinese people and Indian people cannot do business together, because Indian people cannot live without a bargain, and Chinese people cannot give you a bargain.

Much as Russell Peters is a comedian, some of his jokes are so close reality that his audience relies on him to have a deeper understanding of social and political events. He has been known to employ observational comedy. In connection to this, he uses humor in order to highlight issues that touch on ethnicity as well as race. He is known to use this punch line as a disclaimer to his jokes:

Somebody gonna get a hurt real bad

Closely related to his personality is that some sections of the American society have disapproved of his comedy. The comedian has appreciated that a significant part of the audience only wants comedians who look “cool.” By his own admission, he is not a “cool” guy and thus does not fit in such a category.

In connection to this, he has stated that Hollywood favors certain people, and does not appreciate those who come from outside Hollywood. In fact, being successful in North American comedy requires endorsement by the tastemaster. This has created big problems when it comes to getting access to television players and various media networks.

As a solution, Russell Peters has decided to deal directly with partners as well as producers who play outside the establishment. The comedian has stated that he has a personality of the alpha male. In addition to that, he has stated that he considers himself as having a leadership-like personality. However, he is not very famous as Weaver (3) writes thus:

While having an international profile as a stand-up comedian, the Anglo-Indian Canadian, Russell Peters remains relatively unknown in the UK. His audience is principally made of North American ethnic groups, particularly South and East Asians.

Conclusion

Comedy fans may not know much about Russell Peters- but he is one of the most important personalities in stand-up comedy. His contribution remains immense, and his comedy unique. He has been able to demystify the stereotypes at the benefit of the greater society. Most importantly, he has been able to make a balanced fusion of comedy and punchy and weighty messages to his audience.

Works Cited

Manivannan, K. The Great Indian Democracy. Jodhpur: Pirates, 2014. Print.

Peters, Russell, Clayton Peters, and Dannis Koromilas. Call Me Russell: Inside the Outside.

Hoboken, N.J: John Wiley & Sons, 2012. Internet resource.

Pérez, Raúl. Ethnic humor in multiethnic America. (2015): 514-515.

Stebbins, Robert A. The Laugh-Makers: Stand-up Comedy As Art, Business, and Life-Style.

Montreal u.a: McGill-Queen's Univ. Pr, 1990. Print.

Weaver, Simon. The Rhetoric of Racist Humour: Us, Uk and Global Race Joking. Farnham:

Ashgate, 2011. Internet resource.