eclectica
2003-06-16, 14:59
I wonder what it is that makes us laugh and to find things funny. I believe laughter is a type of stress relief. It also feels like an enjoyable and pleasurable thing to laugh. One's face shows a smile during laughter. But maybe it's along the lines of being tickled, which is not a pleasurable thing, but causes one to smile. Laughter is so similar to crying, that at times I confuse the two. When I hear people who cry in the same fashion as they laugh, then I feel like laughing, for laughter is contagious. But I feel guilty, because I am laughing at someone else's crying. Perhaps laughter is a type of hysterical crying. Now that I think about it, crying is not always a sad thing. I cry whenever I am deeply touched or feel strong emotions. One could cry tears of joy.
I was able to study laughter in its original form by seeing the first time my daughter laughed. What caused her to laugh for the first time was my wife imitating her sneezing. Yet only a couple of months prior to that, a sudden act like a sneeze would scare her and make her cry. Still today, what causes her to laugh are acts of drama by my wife, like when she gets on the floor and starts barking like a dog. I see this type of laughter my daughter has as a stress relief. Whereas she used to cry on surprises, later on she dealt with the stress by laughing.
I recall being in the military, and finding the drill instructors to be the funniest people around. Well, it wasn't that they were really all that funny, but under the stress of the situation, comic relief worked well.
Humorous people talk about taboo subjects and say things which we would like the courage to say but don't. Usually someone is being attacked in humor. I think it is hard to be funny without potentially hurting someone's feelings.
Since laughter is at another's expense, it helps for one to be able to laugh at oneself, for the universal benefit of humor. There is a point at which it is too cruel, or too personal and is no longer funny. That is the delicate task of being a comedian, of having just the right amount of aggression and boldness without being too offensive.
It's a good feeling to laugh. I find it a waste when people are ashamed of their laughs, by covering their mouths. Perhaps they grunt like pigs when they laugh and are ashamed of it. This must come about because of being made fun of while laughing. What a shame it is that the one pleasurable moment that people can have to themselves, is marred by self consciousness. Making fun of the way a person laughs is a bad thing to do, and creates more unhappiness in the world.
Though it is not good form to laugh at one's own jokes, it is also dishonest for one to pretend he does not find himself funny. Being a good comedian is a political task because one has to lie by pretending he does not find himself funny, and one has to find the balance between humor and hurting the feelings of others. A comedian needs to be liked by his audience too.
People who make us laugh have a certain power over us, just as musicians who make music that we like, have a power. It is their creations which cause us to react, and that is a power itself. Comparing musicians to comedians though, there is more of a personal relationship of the audience with the comedian than with the musician. It's hard to find a person you don't like funny, but when a musician creates music, it becomes separated from his self and becomes an objective thing that people can appreciate.
I was able to study laughter in its original form by seeing the first time my daughter laughed. What caused her to laugh for the first time was my wife imitating her sneezing. Yet only a couple of months prior to that, a sudden act like a sneeze would scare her and make her cry. Still today, what causes her to laugh are acts of drama by my wife, like when she gets on the floor and starts barking like a dog. I see this type of laughter my daughter has as a stress relief. Whereas she used to cry on surprises, later on she dealt with the stress by laughing.
I recall being in the military, and finding the drill instructors to be the funniest people around. Well, it wasn't that they were really all that funny, but under the stress of the situation, comic relief worked well.
Humorous people talk about taboo subjects and say things which we would like the courage to say but don't. Usually someone is being attacked in humor. I think it is hard to be funny without potentially hurting someone's feelings.
Since laughter is at another's expense, it helps for one to be able to laugh at oneself, for the universal benefit of humor. There is a point at which it is too cruel, or too personal and is no longer funny. That is the delicate task of being a comedian, of having just the right amount of aggression and boldness without being too offensive.
It's a good feeling to laugh. I find it a waste when people are ashamed of their laughs, by covering their mouths. Perhaps they grunt like pigs when they laugh and are ashamed of it. This must come about because of being made fun of while laughing. What a shame it is that the one pleasurable moment that people can have to themselves, is marred by self consciousness. Making fun of the way a person laughs is a bad thing to do, and creates more unhappiness in the world.
Though it is not good form to laugh at one's own jokes, it is also dishonest for one to pretend he does not find himself funny. Being a good comedian is a political task because one has to lie by pretending he does not find himself funny, and one has to find the balance between humor and hurting the feelings of others. A comedian needs to be liked by his audience too.
People who make us laugh have a certain power over us, just as musicians who make music that we like, have a power. It is their creations which cause us to react, and that is a power itself. Comparing musicians to comedians though, there is more of a personal relationship of the audience with the comedian than with the musician. It's hard to find a person you don't like funny, but when a musician creates music, it becomes separated from his self and becomes an objective thing that people can appreciate.