Achmed The Dead Terrorist Analysis

Good evening ladies and gentleman and welcome to the Brisbane Comedy Festival. I am delighted to have this opportunity this evening to share my reflection of the nature of humour and the way it moves us to new ways of seeing the world. Humour can powerfully work to invite audiences to question the way our society constructs the social identities of other religions. It is through humour, that Jeff Dunham’s ventriloquial act featuring his popular dummy, “Achmed the Dead Terrorist” can elucidate this central idea.

Humour plays an important role in our society. It allows audiences to confront societal truths and create awareness of debated issues, such a racism or poverty. Furthermore, humour has the capacity to break down walls around a controversial topic and provide a window for reflection. When we stop laughing, humour is serious stuff, and it can be an effective way of delivering social messages. This can either affirm universal truths or change in our values, attitudes and actions.
Achmed is a terrorist, in particular a ‘terrifying terrorist’. He is a clumsy suicide bomber that set his timer too quickly. In the act, which was performed in Washington DC in 2007, Dunham draws upon a number of stereotypes of Muslims. The articulation of Muslims as extremists, within the text, made the audience pop with laughter. I enjoy satires that encourage me to think about current issues, like religious stereotypes, and this is why I was intrigue in watching “Achmed the Dead Terrorist”. Like me, you may well be wondering how could I possibly laugh at the character of a dead Islamic terrorist. But once I had viewed the entire presentation I came to realise, that humour can powerfully work to invite audiences to question the way our society constructs the social identities of other