Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Commons^™

A Comic Road To Interiors, Or The Pedagogical Matter Of Gen Z Humor, Christopher J. Gilbert

English Department Faculty Works

Generation Z (Gen Z) represents something of a quintessence for the broken promises that now seem to make up the promise of higher education. But if despair indicates the dark side of generational malaise around things like civic engagement, community, and student learning, the dark humor that has emerged out of these generations points to modes of democratic citizenship that are more about reconciliation than resignation. This essay offers a critical reflection on Gen Z humor, its place in college and university classrooms, and its usefulness as a resource for reconsidering how teaching and learning might be tied to a …