Star comedian Sarah Silverman once again demonstrated she — and she alone — need not follow the rules of a politically-correct universe.

In her coyly self-deprecating style, Silverman joked about topics ranging from rape to her boyfriend Jimmy Kimmel to sex. But no matter the material, the packed audience at Memorial Auditorium consistently gasped at first with umbrage, only for laughter to win out and save Silverman from a Don Imus-like fate.

“I went out with a half-black guy, who dumped me because I’m such a fucking loser,” she said before pausing in mock self-reflection. “Wow, I just heard myself say that. I’m such a pessimist. He’s half-white.”

Silverman knows how thin her tightrope is, and she is acutely aware of the stakes should she fall, as she did with the punch line “I love chinks” on a 2001 episode of “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” earning the wrath of Asian-American groups. So last night, while she did plenty to offend — dropping the worst racist and homophobic slurs in the book or joking that she thought African infants with bloated stomachs were pregnant not starving — she also sensed the need to stop herself mid-joke.

“What did Mercedes do?” she asked of the automobile company’s aiding the Nazis during World War II. “They helped facilitate a genocide of people who would ultimately become their best customers. As any Jew can tell you, that’s bad business sense.”

That’s punchy, but it’s PG-rated compared to her Holocaust routine’s previous ending: “If black people were in Germany during World War II, the Holocaust would have never happened. (Pause). Or not to Jews.”

“That movie ]300’’?” she said. “Turns out how they got that title was they measured how gay it was. (Pause.) On a scale of one to 10.”

Critics argue that Silverman can so easily stretch the rubber band of cultural sensitivity without it snapping in her face because of her celebrity and good looks; her supporters cite her intelligence and pure intentions. But for Silverman, who was surprisingly candid in a 20-minute question-and-answer following the show, it’s a simple equation.

“I don’t find many things offensive if it’s funny enough,” she said. “If it’s funny enough, it’s OK.”

She’s onto something here. Perhaps the audience craves a safe place to relax their guard and laugh whenever cultural hypersensitivity degrades into absurdity. Because many people consider her sufficiently funny, Silverman provides that cover. And besides, she’s liberal and pretty cute.

“I thought it was funny,” third-year applied physics graduate student Fen Zhao said. “I think she uses comedy as a satire for other issues.”

Whatever her magic in a bottle is, Silverman isn’t letting it out.

“I don’t want to dissect it,” she said. “That’s for you to do. There’s an elephant in the room.”

Ultimately, Silverman sensed the audience was so comfortable that she unleashed her sharp tongue on students in the front row. Scott Schonfeld ‘08 started his question with, “As a Jewish male myself,” only for Silverman to induce uproarious laughter with “You didn’t need to say that.”

She twice complimented a sophomore’s breasts — and the student was flattered.

“Honestly, because she was one of Maxim’s top-100 hottest women, I guess I was a little honored,” said Siri, who asked The Daily not to print her last name. “If she were ugly, I would be like, ‘Oh, she’s just jealous.’ Or if she were a man I’d feel objectified, but because she’s neither of those I think she gets away with those jokes.”

Silverman mostly tested new material in preparation for the MTV Movie Awards, which she will host on June 3, but filled out her routine with lines from her movie “Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic” and her Comedy Central series “The Sarah Silverman Program.” She played three songs on the guitar, including “Jesus is Magic,” “You’re Going to Die Soon” and “I Love You More.”

Comedian Steve Agee delivered surprisingly strong material in his 10-minute opening act.

“Today in Haiti the weather was 85 degrees with a 96 percent chance of AIDS,” he cracked.

But between Agee’s bright moments were too many stumbles and awkward pauses. He was so tongue-twisted at one point, he had no choice but to admit it: “Holy shit, I’m rambling.”

The ASSU Speakers Bureau arranged Silverman’s visit in conjunction with the Jewish Students Association, Stanford Students in Entertainment, the Stanford Comedy Club and FLiCKS. Silverman briefly met with leaders of these groups in a post-show reception in the Arrillaga Alumni Center.

The Stanford Chaparral managed to crash the after-party, where they declared Silverman an inspiration and awarded her a golden hammer.

“She’s a pretty good influence on most of us,” said publisher Doug Kenter ‘07. “She has a really good understanding of the space of humor.”