What stuck with me the most from Luiselli’s text is the amount of humor that she included in it. I’m also a person who deals with stressful situations by laughing at them or trying to play a joke. Although it’s not always the most appropriate response, it’s interesting how people use humor to cope with unknown or intense situations.
I associated the use of this device with standup comedians. Usually, people who joke about their marginalization, racism, and stereotypes, are the biggest example of how humor can loosen tension about these subjects and help start a conversation about the difficulties of navigating their lives as minority groups.
I found that Luiselli was able to not only bring humor into the narration but use it in such a way that it highlighted just how extreme and unfair the system is. By critiquing the people, institutions, and ideologies involved in the immigration crisis, she allows us readers to become a part of the conversation.
Hey Ashley, I definitely agree that the humor in this story was a powerful tool used by Luiselli to highlight the irony of the situation. Objectively, the crisis is disturbingly inhumane and I think that bringing humor into the narrative helps to act as a reminder of the humanity being ignored. Humor allows Luisielli to connect with her readers and spark an emotive response by reminding us that the stories she shares are real. I agree with your note about humor highlighting the extremity of the situation, it is definitely an effective tool at exposing the irony of the US and reinforcing the harm by evoking a human emotion and not simply stating the facts.
You made an interesting point that I didn’t really notice until your post. Possibly, since the essay was long and continuously circulated traumatic experiences, it seemed like humor made it more digestible for the audience. If that is true, then it might indicate that humans do, for the most part, feel an immense sense of empathy for the individuals but choose to avoid continuously addressing these hard topics in exchange for more light-hearted returns. Hence, I think Luisielli wrote about the topic in a way that could bring audience members that might not be able to handle the narrative in a harsher and more depressing tone, as well as the ones that could.