Humornow

  Joshua Singh I enjoyed reading New Kid by Jerry Craft, and I particularly resonated with being seen as “different” than others in a private school. I went to public school before going to a private high-school. The culture shock that Jordan experiences is similar to the one I did back in 9th grade. I find Craft’s use of incongruity theory and absurdity to critique private-school culture witty and clever. One of my favorite moments in the book is when Jordan first arrives at the school and sees that everyone is stuck up and pompous. He then sees Maury as an angelic figure, as Maury seems like an actual decent person. However, Maury is made fun of and called an Oreo because he is “White on the inside, Black on the outside” (Craft 26). My high-school’s students were predominately white, so I can relate to Jordan experiencing the refreshing sight of a fellow minority.  I can relate to how awkward the conversation was with his dad after he tells him about his first day of school. Hi

I really enjoyed “New Kid” by Jerry Craft. I love how we visualize what’s occurring and how Jordan processes the info. It has a good balance between humor, advice, social commentary, and character complexity. Since it's a different mode of interaction, different character backgrounds can be explored and understood. An example of the balance is through his struggle to fit in. The humorous portion is him exclaiming “I’m Batman!” As he leaves the house, as the story progresses we see his struggle to fit in at school and in his neighborhood. It reminded me of Starr Carter in “The Hate You Give.”  I found humor in the play on words used for the chapter titles, the call-backs to previous scenes, and dynamics between some characters. I loved how Drew stands up to Ms. Rawle and proceeds to make her uncomfortable by playing into her stereotypes. Craft uses humorous dynamics to unveil ignorance and complexities of life. Throughout the book three similarities between characters are acknowledg

    I especially enjoyed reading New Kid because of its ability to depict a school environment with which many of us can relate back to our own middle school experiences. As stated on the dedication page, Jerry Craft dedicates his comic book "to the Jordan Banks in all of us." The connection that so many of us are able to make with this text is evident that Craft's work has accomplished this goal of reaching audiences that can relate to feelings of newness, fear, isolation, and adjustment. Reading of Jordan's transition to his new school, RAD, truly put important issues into perspective for me - his anxieties and fears reminded me of the feelings that I experienced when moving from a small Catholic school to a large, public elementary school for first grade. Though this transition was difficult, I realize now how very privileged I was; I did not have to worry about other students mocking me or belittling me because of pieces of my identity such as race or background. 

New Kid depicts the undeniable realities and discomforts of being in a new or unfamiliar environment. Although I have never been the new kid or struggled with being a minority in spaces that are primarily white, wealthy individuals, I am familiar with the sense of discomfort or aloneness that Jordan experiences as the New Kid. Every time I have made a significant transition, it has taken me a reasonable period to feel comfortable and have a sense of belonging. I am a junior here at Loyola and have only begun to feel stable in my position here as a student. It is undeniably frustrating and aggravating that no forces other than my concessions dictate this discomfort.  Jordan manages this unknowing and discomfort pretty well and talks to other people about what he is going through. However, it is especially hard for him because only a few people in RAD are in the same position as him, so others need help understanding. It is also complex with Jordan's parents because they have confli

  Victoria Sabatino  Thoughts on New Kid  This reflection was almost too easy for me as I have also been a new kid and have gone through a culture shock. To be clear, I am not comparing the two stories as I was never a minority in the room and felt like the odd one out in that way, but being ‘new’ is not new to me.  In 9th grade (an already incredibly awkward time) I moved across the country and it sucked- it sucks less now. Not only that, I had to go through the culture shock of living in a new place and being surrounded by different people. You would not think that catholic all-girl high schools feel that different, but trust me they do.  Little things tallied up- different school lunches, the fact we had to be inside all day, snow days, uniforms- most of it was new and unknown. It is awkward being the odd one- people who were amazed that I had come from California. It was like I came from outer space.  I found the girls in New Jersey to be a lot more sheltered and almost unw

            I enjoyed reading New Kid by Jerry Craft. Jordan is an incredibly endearing main character, and I  found myself relating to his struggles adjusting to the wealthy private school culture. It was extremely  amusing when Liam says, "Mostly everyone shops at Graveyard Groves," (Craft 24) which is a play on  Vineyard Vines (an apparel company many of my former classmates purchased from regularly). Although  I have gone to private schools my whole life, I have not always been in the same socioeconomic class as  my classmates, and have also felt isolation based on race. Through Jordan, Craft makes very relevant  critiques of the private school industry, including issues surrounding financial aid, modern-day  segregation, and performative activism.           I found that the sense of humor that kids like Andy and the sophomores subscribed to was Hobbesian  in nature. They enjoyed knowing that there were kids below their social status and pointing this out. This  humor wa

 I think Perry provides interesting insight into the world of humor by a male's standard of "edgy" comedy. Many older comedians rely on the fallback response of being "unafraid" to say divisive commentary and then presenting it on a platter disguised as comedy. The reality is that these people think that their insensitive views should be taken lightly and that low punches towards marginalized communities should be admitted by the masses. I have personally never watched any of Tyler Perry's work, mostly because I don't understand why he feels it's necessary to dress as a woman to add to his "comedy." It feels like a thinly veiled attempt to approach relatable comedy but to create a line of defense by creating a character to pin the insensitivity to. I don't really want to engage much with Perry's comedy, as it doesn't even approach the realm of humor to me and by engaging it would be encouraging. I'm already upset that I have