From Data to Discourse: An Intersectional Analysis of Storytelling, Power, and Resistance in American Standup Comedy

This mixed-methods study analyzes how storytelling functions as a site of identity negotiation and resistance in American standup comedy. Quantitative content analysis of 14 Netflix specials (1,034 min) identified 83 discrete stories, revealing that comedians tell significantly more personal stories (n = 63) than stories about others (n = 20), χ2 (1, N = 83) = 22.28, p < .001. Race significantly predicted story themes (Cramér’s V = 0.35, p = .015), with White comedians emphasizing politics (20.48%) and Black comedians addressing race (8.43%) and LGBTQ issues (12.05%). Gender showed no significant relationship with themes, while audience reception was overwhelmingly positive. The Foucauldian discourse analysis approach revealed three discursive functions of story-driven standup: racial knowledge reconfiguration, confessional resistance to gender norms, and audience subjectification as complicit witnesses. Findings demonstrate that storytelling transforms standup from entertainment into a discursive arena where marginalized identities challenge dominant narratives and audiences participate in meaning-making. The study advances intersectional humor scholarship by identifying how comedians’ social positions shape narrative content while revealing storytelling’s power to generate empathy and critique through personal stories.