Use of Humor

(Or The Misuse Thereof) — Jordan's Humor Theory and Philosophy

Well, now we get down to the gravy of the whole matter. This is the stuff of real substance: influencing people through use of humor. The problem with research about humor and its effects on our minds, emotions, and actions, is that nobody seems to quite take it seriously. But there you have it. I have a very deep conviction that humor is capable of being one of the most effective ways of influencing people, if used carefully and correctly. The reason why I believe this is because some of the deepest and most profound truths that motivate me the most to take action are also quite humorous ones. Of course, perceiving something as humorous is largely an individual matter; mostly a matter of personal attitudes towards specific things and to life in general. So, even though I see humor as a very powerful tool, I also see it as very unpredictable and not highly reliable, just because of its spontaneous nature and different people's capacity or willingness to appreciate different types of humor. Because of this, it is very important to keep in mind that humor is but one of many tools for influencing others, and is certainly not appropriate for all situations. It must be used with tact, at the right place, at the right time. Of course, keeping these things in mind, it is exactly because of human inconsistency and imperfection that we are capable of appreciation of humor at all. Since there is conflict in the world, and since we are capable of seeing both our own and others' faults (to varying degrees), we can also laugh at ourselves (or at least at others). This also brings us to the great philosophical question of whether God has a sense of humor. I believe that He does; but I'm not sure that He ever actually laughs at things so much as He simply finds joy in them, since nothing ever surprises Him. Although He allows us to make mistakes and be ourselves (I don't believe He predetermines our actions), I think He already knows what we're going to do. And He certainly has His own fair share of surprises up His sleeves for us. I think He's got a better sense of humor than we do. A perfect one, in fact. It's usually us imperfect humans that can't take the joke.

Fig. 1: depending on the audience and how they interpret this image, this may be considered to be totally pointless, flippant humor

Misuse of Humor

One major problem is that our modern mass media has managed to sufficiently dumb down the average person to the extent that they simply can't understand jokes with complex or more intellectual elements in them. They don't even catch on that there was a joke in the first place. Another problem, that of flippancy, has so desensitized people to what is actually funny that they laugh at things if they catch on that it's supposed to be a joke, whether they get it or not, or whether it was funny or not. Flippancy is simply blatant absurdity pretending that it is funny when it is not. And I don't think it's healthy to convince one's self of such things. Usually flippant humor is dependent on the simplest and basest of human emotions: sexuality and violence. Flippancy, I think, destroys the mind.

The next major problem is that of cynicism. This humor is usually much more intellectually stimulating, but has the wrong attitude and generally also deals with the baser emotions. It destroys, instead of the mind, the heart. The more one is exposed to cynicism, the more motivation they lose. They lose their will to change, since all hope is eventually lost to them. Everything eventually appears to them to be pointless, dark, and dreary. They end up sitting in their recliners all day eating canned sardines with donuts (or alternatively, with alcoholic beverages), and wallowing in self-pity.

Fig. 2: politicians make bad clowns, and vice-versa (this may or may not be considered cynical)

So how can humor be used effectively, when it has such varying results? The only two suggestions I can think of are (1) to have it come from a genuine sense of love and joy that you've developed (which I discuss to great extent later), and (2) to use as much of it in as many different forms as possible (but carefully and tactfully, avoiding flippancy and cynicism, and trying to use appropriate timing!). One or two well-crafted jokes really aren't very likely to change anybody's outlook on life. You have to persist and inundate the people with the stuff if it's going to do any good. And you have to vary the intellectual level quite a bit to reach a wider audience, like Shakespeare did. If you don't consider yourself to be a Shakespeare, and can't just pump out the humor stuff without running out, it's usually pretty effective to use a few well-placed jokes along with other methods of influence. But by itself, you've got to use a lot of it. It's probably a good thing that most lawyers and politicians haven't been trained to be clowns. There's no telling how much power that would give them over our minds. Charlie Chaplin, in what I believe to have been one of his more inspired moments, said "I remain just one thing, and one thing only, and that is a clown. It places me on a far higher plane than any politician." I do, however, know somebody that owns a newspaper in Florida who has been professionally trained as a clown. He also used to be a member of the KKK and always dresses in all green. But setting asides aside, let's discuss what humor is and how it works. As I mentioned before, humor is a difficult subject to research; and consequently, many humor theories conflict with each other. It seems that humor is so complex that it attains completely different, even opposite results in different situations. Humor can both alienate people and make them feel closer together. The same joke can make one person laugh and offend another (while a third party stands in dazed confusion, wondering what they missed). Humor can deaden the mind and heart, or it can cause deep insights and delight. I think the variables that affect how people react to it the most are the attitude and target, or butt, of the joke.

Reactions to Humor

In my various humor experiments, I've discovered that when a person is the butt of a joke, and the said party is present for the hearing of the joke, the results are often negative; and depending on the temperance of the individual, are sometimes even violent. It is for this reason that I have decided that humor experimentation can be very dangerous (particularly when dealing with sumo-wrestlers, football players, and peoples trained in martial arts), and that appropriate protective equipment may be advisable. However, I have also discovered that reactions are also affected by the amount of intellectual power the subject has. If they do not comprehend the joke, reactions (even with the same person) will vary between totally passive ignorance, obvious confusion, feigned laughter, or frustration and anger. Other factors that seem to effect reactions are time of day (or night), whether the person is in heavy traffic or not, if they've had coffee, and whether attractive persons of the opposite gender are present. I have concluded that in order to avoid negative reactions, it is probably best to try to avoid making specific people or groups of people the target of a joke, as is poorly illustrated by the image above. Some people may be offended that I have placed an image of Barack Obama painted up like the Joker on this page. They may interpret it as meaning that I am a fanatical conservative, am racist, or that I dislike the Joker. The fact of the matter is that I hold both Obama and the Joker in high regard, as far as clowns and politicians go (which is usually much too far).

Retuning again to the philosophy of humor, I reason that by far the best results are achieved in the use of humor when it comes from a genuine sense of love and joy that has been accumulated in a disciplined manner by the person who dispenses the comedy. Not everybody is capable of sensing that they are truly loved by the people they associate with; not everyone is capable of feeling joy, as they have been so desensitized by negativity and cynicism; but most people are not beyond hope. The ultimate goal of applying humor to a situation is to convey more than just a sense of enjoyment and entertainment: it is to uplift others, to bring them joy. And this cannot honestly be done efficiently if the humorist does not genuinely love life and the people they associate with. This will be discussed in further depth in the next few of sections.

Comic Discipline

One of the most ironic things I find about humor is that, by its very nature, it is intended to be seen as light, effortless, and insignificant. Although it often is (which use, I believe, is harmful), the best quality humor is merely only using this as a mask: it is not humor for the sake of humor but a means to an end. It is a very serious matter, since by its easy-going way of placing you at ease, it also forces you to let your guard down; allowing the ideas presented to make direct impact on the subconscious mind. It is therefore a very potent, and potentially dangerous tool. It is seen, even by many who have made it their work and even place significant effort into it, as a toy. This is not the case. Unfortunately, I believe more people are aware of this who have bad intentions than those with good ones. Comedy and humor is a discipline in two ways: in how one qualifies to be humorous, and in actual technique and method. The "Humor Attitude"(s) One interesting concept that I've sort of developed on my own (which gives it great validity), is the theory that you can develop a humorous attitude which makes you become a humorous person. Many people struggle with trying to be funny. It is often very painful to watch such individuals try so hard to get a laugh. I suggest that their fundamental problems are: (first) that they just don't have my brilliant intellect, second, that they are trying too hard and need to relax, and third, that they probably have the wrong motives for wanting to be humorous. If the end they have in mind is to get a laugh, they've set their sights much too low. If they set their sights instead on fixing all the problems in the world, they might at least get a laugh.

Being a comic really isn't depressing (unless people hit you with sticks, or throw excessive amounts of overripe produce at you), but it can be quite demanding.

One study I've studied (on therapeutic uses of humor, specifically dealing with stress), entitled "Lighten Up: Survival Skills for People Under Pressure" by C.W. Metcalf and Roma Felible, suggests that there are three basic humor skills, or attitudes, that can be developed. The first is to Escape from the Center of the Universe. Once we realize that the universe doesn't revolve around us, it allows us to, from a healthy objective distance, look at situations from the outside and see the absurdity in them (rather than getting caught up in the emotions of the moment and reacting rashly).

The second humor skill is to Take Yourself Lightly and Your Work or Problem Seriously. This is essentially consciously deciding what to worry about and what not to worry about. The things you should worry about are only a very few things: the things you actually have control over. You have control over yourself, your attitude, your thoughts, and your actions. There's no point in stressing over the other stuff, especially if you can't really do anything about it. "When the going gets tough, the tough lighten up." Pick your battles, and focus on the positive things, rather than the negative.

Third is that Misery and Pain Are Free, but Joy Has a Price. This basically means putting continual effort and focus into maintaining a disciplined joy in being alive. It's not easy to be continually joyful; it takes quite a lot of energy and concentration. But it certainly is enjoyable. As you can see, these three skills are very closely related, and I'm not quite sure exactly how or why they chose to call them what they do, but the concepts certainly make sense.

One thing I really like about their book is that it contains exercises, which they call "humorobics," which help you to develop these skills and attitudes. These involve such things as laughing at yourself in the mirror each morning for about five minutes, taking pictures of yourself making ridiculous faces and carrying them in your wallet, keeping a "joy journal" which contains every little thing you noticed during the day that caused you to experience some amount of joy, and taking regular "minivactions" in which you remove yourself mentally to a relaxing, happy place for five to fifteen minutes (basically daydreaming or spacing out). They also recommend keeping and regularly using a "humor library" which is full of personally favorite humorous books, clippings, quotations, cartoons, and photos. Like I said, a lot of hard work.

The Humor Viewpoint

Since, as I discuss in my humor theory below, the elements of surprise and truth are two of the most essential aspects of generating a comic response in others, the way that you look at the world is absolutely vital in being a humorous person. It must be unique and different from what others expect; but not so different that others cannot relate and are alienated by it. Looking at it from a philosophical standpoint, I believe it must be as unbiased a view as possible, since most people have quite a lot of biases and misconceptions but can inherently recognize truth when they are confronted by it (and also since my goal in using humor is not for the purpose of getting laughs, but as a means for educating, uplifting, and inspiring others in order to improve the quality of their lives). Although the actual viewpoint of the comedian must be extremely accurate and unbiased, recognizable exaggeration must often be employed as a means of incorporating irony and making important points. This takes a great deal of tact to do without actually distorting the truth and harming people's minds. It is therefore very, very important for the comedian to be highly educated about a great many things; not just generally, but in great detail also. It requires great dedication of mind. These points, of course, bring us back to the necessity for discipline in humor.

This viewpoint that I discuss reflects the ideals and principles that I have been attempting to convey throughout the rest of this website, so it has a lot to do with the priorities of what you focus your mind on, what your attitudes are (which I have just discussed — but mostly consists of maintaining a disciplined sense of joy and love), acknowledging the discrepancies between our ideals and our human ability to accomplish them, and aesthetic, emotional, and artistic appeal. I call it (drum roll...) The Big Picture Mentality! Others, such as Dr. Seuss, of course, have different (and more humorous) ways of describing it (looking at the world through the wrong end of the telescope, for example), but I feel that this somewhat boring title pretty succinctly sums up the idea. This, obviously, is very closely related to the "Escape from the Center of the Universe" attitude.

The way I look at it, when you find a detached distance to look at the world (at least a fairly accurate, unbiased one), you can see all sorts of unexpected connections that others just can't. It seems that most people just get caught up in the mundane details of everyday life. Even when the subject of your humor is everyday, common life (and a lot of the best humor is), you just can't have that necessary element of surprise, that new twist that catches people off-guard and gets their attention and makes them laugh and form new connections in their brains, when you don't see things from this detached distance. 'Nuff said?

Understanding Humor

So, theoretically, once you've developed this attitude and viewpoint and become a humorous person, you should be able to actually use this humor to accomplish something positive and constructive — possibly even useful. Just how is this done? Ah! There you've got me. I've never actually experienced this myself. But I think the key probably lies in understanding the different elements that make up humor and why they effect us the way they do. What are the elements of humor? As far as I can tell, it consists mostly of an element of truth and an element of surprise or absurdity. The two of these together creates a sense of conflict or irony. If the subject of the joke is something that the hearer has strong emotions about, the conflict will either frustrate them or make them laugh. It is generally the laugh response that causes us to identify an idea as humorous (and not the frustrated one).

Let's discuss laughter. What is it, and why? Darned if I know. Doesn't make much sense to me. I think it's just what we do when we can't come up with any better ways to react. But seriously, laughter is good for you, at least within reason. Excessive laughter can be dangerous, since you might suffocate or bang your head on something. And if you're driving and your eyes get all watery, you might crash, especially if your hands are shaky. When you laugh, your body releases some special "happy" anti-stress chemicals called endorphins (endorphins are also released during aerobic exercises and the act of procreation). Your body also releases T cells, B cells, immunoglobulins, and NK cells, which help to fight viruses, regulate cell growth, and work against tumors. On average children laugh 400 times per day, and adults only laugh 15 times per day. Also, they laughed about four times more often back in the 1950's than we do now. I think we really ought to do something about that. I blame our grave state of chronic oversobriety on the increase of cynical humor, since it progressively deadens our capacity to find joy.

Forms of Humor

One form of humor that is very easy to get away with is self-depreciative humor (poking fun at yourself). You are not usually at risk of offending the audience (unless they are fanatical fans of you, or madly in love with you, which is highly unlikely but not impossible), and it doesn't require much mental exertion. It doesn't have to be clever, because the irony and paradox of the situation itself (a person openly criticizing one's self) is what makes it funny. And it can be used to teach principles and promote values, since what you are criticizing in yourself is a fault — you are using yourself to illustrate the breaking of the value or principle (and thus teach by contrast).

Self-depreciative humor, combined abruptly in contrast with self-overvaluing humor can have quite an effect. I haven't actually seen this method used much; most comedians maintain a fairly consistent persona of either highly overconfident egotism, depressive common-man overhumility, or ridiculous cheerful ignorance, in order to avoid appearing bipolar or just completely off-the-wall crazy. It is a bit risky and has potential, just as many other forms of humor do, of offending people. But I think there are distinct possibilities here, so long as people are both aware that it's supposed to be humorous and you don't overdo it or use it as your primary technique.

There are, of course, many more forms of humor; but considering that this is a work-in-progress, they are not yet listed or organized here. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

A Few other Random, Not Yet Organized or Fully Integrated Concepts

A few ideas that I need to jot down really quick are: knowing your audience, comic timing and delivery, comic energy, and the values used in comedy. As I mentioned briefly before, Shakespeare was a master at reaching multiple levels of society and a very wide audience in his writing, including his humor. Although it is in a very different English that is difficult for us to understand now, he was able to reach the common, uneducated man and the elite, educated, and rich in society. Another more modern example of an individual capable of this is the famous comedian and actor Robin Williams. In examining their genius, I often wonder about how ethical their behavior has been in their efforts to reach a wide audience.

Many people, as I have mentioned several times already, are only capable of appreciating very base humor. Is it worth lowering your ethical standards to get a laugh out of them? Does this actually benefit anybody? I really don't think so. I remember a video I saw where Robin Williams was demonstrating a new game to a bunch of gamers. Every time he made even the vaguest reference to a more vulgar part of the body, he would invariably elicit laughter. It was so pathetically easy for him to do and stupid that I am absolutely convinced that he was actually making fun of the audience without them actually being aware of it. What was the benefit of this? It didn't in any way contribute to their knowledge, and it certainly wasn't uplifting (and I have a hunch that Williams kind of hated himself for it). It was blatant flippancy. People merely laughed because it was Williams and therefore must be funny. They laughed to avoid social ostracism. They did it because they were expected to. In other words, even though it contributed to the Robin Williams image, I am morally opposed to it. The same applies to Shakey. My theory is that these people, no matter how idiotic they may behave, still have great potential. They, despite their intellectual resistance, are still capable of being inspired to improvement and should not be catered to with baser humor. If it's kept simple but clean, I think they may still be able to appreciate it.

So, if people laugh regularly at things that they don't actually find funny (meaning they use laughter as a social lubricant in order to be accepted by others), I theorize that positive peer pressure may be generated to laugh at better quality humor. This requires a very sharp perception of the actual desires and minds of your audience, rather than just a general observation of their behavior. Also, with comic timing, I tie this in with the fact that humor is but one tool to influence the minds and hearts of others. Sometimes it's just not worth the effort to try to get a laugh out of them, especially if the method employed is detrimental. There are often much more efficient ways of changing some of these poorer souls. I don't really have much more to say about delivery and timing at the moment, but I think mentioning them is good enough for now.

As for energy, it's definitely quite helpful, and I suspect ought to be sought after and accumulated, along with education and that sense of joy and love. I actually just completely wrote myself to exhaustion and ran out of energy. I'm going to zonk out now. Terribly sorry to deprive you of my further comic genius at the present moment.

Conclusion (and How to Train Your Humorosity)

Lighten up! Be lighthearted, but not lightminded. Be joyful and loving, for goodness' sake! Educate yourself as much as possible about as many things as possible. I think the correct use of humor is to show and contrast the difference between right and wrong, and to do it in an uplifting and enjoyable way.

Pointing out again that this is a work-in-progress, my plan to improve this section involves creating a self-evaluation test that can help you determine your humor strengths and weaknesses that will generate a prioritized list of my expert suggestions for how to train yourself as a humorist. For those who have signed up for a free account on this website, I will allow the results to be saved in their information so that they can return to it and update it by reevaluating themselves at later times.

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