Sass - (Mf! Momentary Futures in Black Studies) by J Finley

About the Book

"J Finley argues that through humor, and particularly sass, comedy functions as a medium for Black women to articulate and redress cultural, social, and political marginalization. Finley challenges mainstream and scholarly assumptions about sassiness as an identity or personality trait to which Black women humorists may be reduced. Instead, by deploying sass as a theory and building an archive of Black women's humor, Finley creates a new genre of discourse for understanding the ways in which Black women use language, style, gesture and intent to produce (often humorous) meaning in speaking back to authority, including authority that is merely presumed"--

Book Synopsis

Black women comedians are more visible than ever, performing around the world in physical venues like comedy clubs and festivals, along with appearing in films, streaming specials, and online videos. Across these mediums, humor--and particularly sass--functions as a tool for Black women to articulate and redress cultural, social, and political marginalization.

J Finley theorizes sass as a new critical lens to better understand the power of Black women's humor and humanity and explores how sass functions as a powerful resource in Black women's expressive repertoire. Challenging mainstream assumptions about "sassiness" as an identity or personality trait to which Black women humorists may be reduced, Finley deploys sass to create a new genre of discourse for understanding the ways in which Black women use language, style, gesture, and intent to produce meaning--often humorous--in speaking back to authority. Grounded in an ethnographic approach to Black women's experiences, Finley conducted extensive interviews as well as participant-observation as a critic, audience member, and comic herself to collect and honor the stories that Black women comics tell about themselves. Interdisciplinary and conceptually rigorous, Finley's work shows us how we can and should read Black women's expressions of sass in humor as attempts at social transformation that involve a fundamental critique of power and authority, and a gesture at collective liberation.

Review Quotes

"A good read in every sense of the word. Finley gives us the depth and stakes of Black women's humor and the frameworks for understanding how humor manages the parameters of stereotype and misogynoir."--Bettina Judd, author of Feelin: Creative Practice, Pleasure, and Black Feminist Thought

"A brilliant and insightful analysis of sass as practiced by Black women . . . as a mode of cultural performance, as a genre of discourse, and as a means of understanding the mutually constitutive nature of Black women's humor and humanity. . . . This volume adds to an underrepresented but growing field and convincingly demonstrates the possibility of alternative forms of liberation. . . . Highly recommended."--CHOICE

"An astounding book. Finley provides readers with a wealth of information--personal accounts, criticism, biography, and textual analysis--that gives texture to our understanding of these comedians, their influences, and how they influence others."--Danielle Fuentes Morgan, author of Laughing to Keep from Dying: African American Satire in the Twenty-First Century

"Nuanced and creative . . . . an enlightening and rigorous examination of sass as a means of asserting one's power in an oppressive world. It's an insightful study of the politics of humor."--Publishers Weekly