Full Idea
Sometimes it is exactly what is offensive about a joke that makes it funny.
Gist of Idea
Jokes can sometimes be funny because they are offensive
Source
Daniel Jacobson (Ethical Criticism and the Vice of Moderation [2006], 'emotional')
Book Reference
'Aesthetics and the Phil of Art (debates)', ed/tr. Kieran,Matthew [Blackwell 2004], p.350
A Reaction
Jacobson offers this in support of his immoralist view, that immoral literature can be aesthetically successful. It is uncomfortable to find yourself laughing at a joke of which you disapprove.
Related Idea
Idea 22697 Moral defects of art can be among its aesthetic virtues [Jacobson,D]