Social Media Post - Week 2

Week two of living in London has been a busy one; with classes and multiple filed trips, but it is still too fun to complain. This week I had the chance to go with other students to “The Comedy Store”, a comedy club in the West End. I was more than excited considering that I had been ill the day before and feeling a bit homesick because it was my nephew’s second birthday. When I got to the comedy club I was excited that all the comedians were all from different parts of the world. Part of their standup routine was to take suggestions from the audience and make a joke out of it. One comedian from Canada was given the topic of the royal baby, but instead of it being funny, most of the audience found it offensive. I didn’t think anything of it because in America it’s quite common to make fun of our political leaders, however here if anyone speaks ill of the Royal family people are quick to come to their defense. It reminded me of how in class how we’ve been learning about power distance, where power is distributed unequally, and how some cultures accept it more than others. In America we have quite a low power distance, making fun of people who are higher than us in “social rankings” is actually normal, jokes are constantly made about our president. In London however I found that there is a higher power distance within that aspect. Everyone loves the monarchy and respects it, and to even make a joke about the royal family seems preposterous here. The level of respect people have for one another and their leaders in Brittan, makes me wish we had that.