Leticia Neria PhD thesis - Research@StAndrews:FullText ...

Tlatelolco in 1968, and the Halconazo in 1971, much of Mexican society still did not
understand the rebelliousness of youth and its desire for political and social change.
Social ills were also addressed, such as abuse by fellow citizens. In one of the
dialogues from Mecánica Nacional we saw how society justified its misconduct. Any
ordinary person who had a chance seemed ready to take advantage of someone else.
Many characters in the films are grotesque and it is hard to sympathise with them. But
they show the flaws of society, and though it is uncomfortable, we have to admit that
the caricatured images are in fact very similar to ourselves. In the comics, the characters
were more Manichaean but they were as critical as the film characters.
So, how did humour help to address these topics and what was the purpose in
doing so? The use of humour was a way to unfold some difficult issues – social and
political. The same topics could have been addressed without humour. But humour
made it more palatable. It helped overcome censorship. Mass media and humour were a
safety valve; they helped set a mood of rebellion without organising one. Through
comic characters, we took revenge, we insulted those is positions of power, whether in
government or simply the man next door. The media became the voice of all of us.
The media is part of the public record in the sense that few other avenues existed
to confront the authorities publicly with the truth. Every week readers recognised
themselves and their concerns in the pages of the comics, and on the screens of cinemas.
In every laugh, chuckle, and smile, people both enjoyed and condemned the attitude of
the pernicious. That generated awareness. And knowledge and awareness form the
beginning of an understanding of reality and perhaps the beginning of a desire to change
it. So, although humour will not mobilise people, it awakens consciousness. Every
laugh brings hope for a better future, a world in which each of us can be a comic hero,
can stand up to power. Seriously.
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