On Steir-Livny's Is it OK to Laugh About It?

Abstract

On Steir-Livny's Is it OK to Laugh About It? Nikita Lobanov Is it OK to Laugh About It? Holocaust Humour, Satire and Parody in Israeli Culture. By Liat Steir-Livny. London: Vallentine Mitchell, 2017. 208 pp., ISBN 978-1910383353. US $74.95 In this book, Liat Steir-Livny engages with a series of themes in and around the controversial phenomenon of Holocaust humor in Israeli society and, by examining a variety of aspects of this genre, discusses how its role in Hebrew culture is a double-edged sword. First, she employs critical textual analysis to explore humor based on the genocide in a variety of genres, ranging from jokes and TV programs to comedic skits and political transcripts. Second, she provides a multimedia content analysis that allows for an elaborate investigation of the gathered material. The result is a convincing blend of data from different media sources found in Israel, other countries, and global online spaces. The first three chapters provide a theoretical framework of the book. Steir-Livny goes to great lengths to expand on the multilayered nature of Holocaust humor and how it touches every aspect of Israeli life, including history, activism, popular media products, and Holocaust remembrance itself. Furthermore, Holocaust humor in the online realm is addressed in all its multifarious glory—social media, blogs, YouTube, and podcasts. An important clarification is the difference between Hebrew and Israeli humor and how the latter is shaped by the conflict with the country's Arab neighbors. The author is balanced in presenting different views on Holocaust humor, sometimes criticizing with historians such as Alan Rosenfeld how comedians trivialize the tragedy, while others, [End Page 126] such as Viktor Frankl, adopt jokes as a healing tool. Steir-Livny highlights how Holocaust humor creates paradoxes, especially when politicians and common citizens from opposing camps accuse each other, with different degrees of ironic detachment, of being Nazis. The second part of the book examines Holocaust humor from multiple critical perspectives, such as generational divides and the effect on Israeli society of popular YouTube videos of Hitler's downfall. The fourth chapter focuses on the changing perception of the Holocaust, describing the presumed cross-generational saving qualities of humor. According to the author, this phenomenon is a defense mechanism, characterized by misplaced sanctification. The numerous texts discussed by the author emphasize that the memory of Holocaust trauma encompasses the whole of society blurring time, uniting past and present. This emphasis leads to the fifth chapter, which describes initiatives around alternative Holocaust Remembrance Day, where, with the help of black humor and a carnivalesque atmosphere, moments of seriousness and sadness are juxtaposed with laughter. Steir-Livny affirms that these rituals maintain respect for the Holocaust while allowing Israeli citizens to deal with the trauma through friendly gatherings, levity, and moments of intimacy. Chapter 6 criticizes the commodification of the Holocaust, highlighting how the black humor in Israeli society foregrounds the ambiguity of this transformation of the Holocaust into a product that is "just like others." The cynical attitude of Israeli reality TV and some public figures' statements regarding the Holocaust have encouraged satirists to use the tragedy to create parodies such as "The Camp," a fake audition for a show where participants are willing to become Kapos and abuse barrack-mates for their "15 minutes of fame" (110). Chapter 7 deepens the emphasis on cynicism as it addresses Holocaust satire and parody brought about by Israeli authorities, such as the speech by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on October 20, 2015, in Jerusalem that blamed the Holocaust on Hajj Mohammed Amin al-Husseini, the Arab mufti at the time. The response of the Israeli left wing was both serious—noting the historic inconsistencies of the speech—and humorous, for example, in the creation of "The Mufti made me do it" memes that took Netanyahu's logic to absurd lengths. Both sides criticized the other for politicizing the Holocaust, increasing its traumatic effect on contemporary Israeli society. Chapter 8 provides a detailed discussion of how Israel's memory of the Holocaust is divided along ethnic lines—between Israeli citizens of North [End Page 127] African origin and those of European origin. The representations of...