Dave Chappelle and Philosophy

Mark Ralkowski is Associate Professor of Philosophy and Honors at George Washington University. He edited Louis C.K. and Philosophy: You Don’t Get to Be Bored (2016) and Curb Your Enthusiasm and Philosophy: Awaken the Social Assassin Within (2012). He has written numerous scholarly works on Heidegger and on ancient Greek philosophy, the latest being Plato at Syracuse (2019).

• Why You Can't Cancel Dave Chappelle--Mark RalkowskiI. When Keeping It Real Goes Wrong1. My Money, My Choice--Luis Felipe Bartolo Alegre2. Is Dave Chappelle a Good Role Model?--Andy Wible3. How Old is Fifteen, Really?--Dave Lyrewood4. Who Is John Galt? Dave Chappelle!--Roger HuntII. Going Hard in the Paint5. A Master of Comedic Irony--Raymond Perrier6. Dave Chappelle Knows Better than That--Mia Wood7. Introduction to White Stupidity: Philosophy 101--Mukasa Mubirumusoke8. Dave Chappelle's Positive Propaganda--Chris A. KramerIII. Everything's Funny Until It Happens To You9. Blouses and Pancakes--Mona Rocha and James Rocha10. Upsetting the Alphabet People--Zoe Walker11. Is Dave Chappelle a Feminist?--Christopher M. Innes12. Why Chappelle Needs to Get Over His #MeToo Headache--Neha PandeIV. Overwhelmed by the Irony13. Clayton Bigsby and the Social Construction of the Self--Richard Bilsker14. The Many Contradictions of Dave Chappelle--Duncan Gale15. Well, Look No Further, Fella, You Found Me!--John V. Karativis16. Dave Chappelle Meets Sigmund Freud--Dru Graham, Bennet Soenen, and Adam BarkmanV. Speaking Recklessly17. Revolution or Illusion?--Brandyn Heppard18. Dave Chappelle Does Not Trust Us--Steven A. Benko and Scout Burch19. Hard Truths and Dangerous Jokes--Lauren Olin20. Dave Chappelle Says He Doesn't Mean It, So Just Shut Up Already--Steven BurgessVI. Revealing People to Themselves21. Why Do You Feel Guilty for Loving Dave Chappelle?--Eliza Wizner22. How Dave Chappelle and Saint Augustine Help Us See Ourselves--Conor W. Hanson23. Original Gangsta--Marisa Diaz-Waian24. How Dave Chappelle Uses Absurdity to Make Us Think--Alex R. GillhamVII. Stand Back from the Elephant25. Dance Like Nobody's Watching--Mark RalkowskiBibliography"The Worst Motherfuckers"Index

“Dave Chappelle. Truth-teller or out of touch? Progressive or retrograde? Timeless or tired? Feminist or misogynist? Ally or apologist? Iconic or infamous? The philosophers gathered here confront these questions and more, offering readers a deeper appreciation of Chappelle’s art and a better understanding of Chappelle as an artist. Dave Chappelle and Philosophy is a portrait of the artist as a middle-aged man and anyone interested in comedy, and potentially some who aren’t, will enjoy and benefit from this book.” —Sheila Lintott, Professor of Philosophy, Bucknell University