‘I do sex comedy because I don’t know politics’: Park Na-rae and feminism-charged comedy in South Korea

This article investigates how female comedians in South Korea challenge gender norms and engage with feminist issues through the case study of Park Na-rae, one of the country’s most prominent television comediennes. Known for her sexually suggestive humour, Park has achieved widespread popularity while also provoking public controversies and even police investigations. By analysing her performance in the Netflix stand-up special Park Na-rae: Glamour Warning (2019) alongside related media discourses, this article explores Park’s dual strategies of producing feminist humour while simultaneously depoliticizing its impact. Drawing on Rebecca Krefting’s concept of the ‘economy of charged humour’, the article demonstrates how South Korean comediennes negotiate transgressive agency within the constraints of mainstream entertainment culture. By foregrounding their strategic performativity of comic intent – through comparing onstage performances with offstage paratexts – this article illuminates the complex terrain in which East Asian comediennes mediate feminist expression within their specific industrial and sociocultural contexts.