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Voicing the Everyday: Humor as Affirmation and Resistance in Chinese Women’s Stand-Up The case of Chinese online stand-up comedy shows

Lai, Ziying LU (2025) MKVM13 20251
Media and Communication Studies
Department of Communication and Media
Abstract
This thesis investigates how Chinese female stand-up comedians construct gendered narratives through humor and how female audiences interpret and respond to these performances. Focusing on two popular online shows—Stand-up Comedy and Its Friends and Comedy King (Stand-up Season)—the study examines how humor becomes a space for negotiating feminist expression under ideological, cultural, and commercial constraints in contemporary China.
Combining Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) and Thematic Analysis (TA), this research analyzes performances by comedians such as Cai Cai, Echo, and YaRong, focusing on themes like body image, menstrual stigma, and family expectations. These comedians employ rhetorical strategies such as irony and... (More)
This thesis investigates how Chinese female stand-up comedians construct gendered narratives through humor and how female audiences interpret and respond to these performances. Focusing on two popular online shows—Stand-up Comedy and Its Friends and Comedy King (Stand-up Season)—the study examines how humor becomes a space for negotiating feminist expression under ideological, cultural, and commercial constraints in contemporary China.
Combining Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) and Thematic Analysis (TA), this research analyzes performances by comedians such as Cai Cai, Echo, and YaRong, focusing on themes like body image, menstrual stigma, and family expectations. These comedians employ rhetorical strategies such as irony and self-deprecation to address gender inequality while navigating the boundaries of acceptability.
Audience interviews reveal a spectrum of engagement: while some viewers resonate with the comedians’ narratives and appreciate their feminist undertones, others express ambivalence or critique performances for being emotionally shallow or commercially driven. This reflects ongoing tensions in postfeminist media culture, where feminist ideas are both embraced and questioned.
Theoretically, the study draws on Butler’s (1990) concept of gender performativity, Gill’s (2007) critique of postfeminism, and Hermes’s (2005; 2023) notion of cultural citizenship. The findings suggest that stand-up comedy offers a mediated platform for feminist discourse, allowing women to speak from lived experience while contending with expectations of authenticity, relatability, and ideological restraint.
This thesis contributes to feminist media studies by highlighting humor’s dual role as a site of resistance and regulation, and by centering female audience engagement as a form of everyday feminist practice.
Keywords:
Chinese stand-up comedy; gender performativity; feminist expression; postfeminism; cultural citizenship; audience engagement; humor and empowerment (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Lai, Ziying LU
supervisor
organization
course
MKVM13 20251
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
language
English
id
9188732
date added to LUP
2025-07-03 16:27:00
date last changed
2025-07-03 16:27:00
@misc{9188732,
  abstract     = {{This thesis investigates how Chinese female stand-up comedians construct gendered narratives through humor and how female audiences interpret and respond to these performances. Focusing on two popular online shows—Stand-up Comedy and Its Friends and Comedy King (Stand-up Season)—the study examines how humor becomes a space for negotiating feminist expression under ideological, cultural, and commercial constraints in contemporary China.
Combining Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) and Thematic Analysis (TA), this research analyzes performances by comedians such as Cai Cai, Echo, and YaRong, focusing on themes like body image, menstrual stigma, and family expectations. These comedians employ rhetorical strategies such as irony and self-deprecation to address gender inequality while navigating the boundaries of acceptability.
Audience interviews reveal a spectrum of engagement: while some viewers resonate with the comedians’ narratives and appreciate their feminist undertones, others express ambivalence or critique performances for being emotionally shallow or commercially driven. This reflects ongoing tensions in postfeminist media culture, where feminist ideas are both embraced and questioned.
Theoretically, the study draws on Butler’s (1990) concept of gender performativity, Gill’s (2007) critique of postfeminism, and Hermes’s (2005; 2023) notion of cultural citizenship. The findings suggest that stand-up comedy offers a mediated platform for feminist discourse, allowing women to speak from lived experience while contending with expectations of authenticity, relatability, and ideological restraint.
This thesis contributes to feminist media studies by highlighting humor’s dual role as a site of resistance and regulation, and by centering female audience engagement as a form of everyday feminist practice.
Keywords:
Chinese stand-up comedy; gender performativity; feminist expression; postfeminism; cultural citizenship; audience engagement; humor and empowerment}},
  author       = {{Lai, Ziying}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Voicing the Everyday: Humor as Affirmation and Resistance in Chinese Women’s Stand-Up The case of Chinese online stand-up comedy shows}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}