The Origins of Humor

I love to laugh. I laugh at jokes, stories, situations and myself. I do my best to not laugh at others. When other people do or experience things that I find humorous I try to refrain from laughing until I have seen evidence that they share the humor. Laughing, like yawning, is very contagious; it is difficult to not laugh when others are laughing around you.

Recently I have heard various news reports and stories about the role of humor in our lives. Scientists and researchers have worked on experiments that they have designed to determine whether humor is an evolutionary trait that is fundamental to our species. One researcher found that almost 98% of people thought that they were more funny than the average person. I have never been a complete whiz with the bell curve, but I think those numbers are statistically impossible. Very few people are willing to admit that they lack a basic sense of humor.

Other scientists have demonstrated that what makes something funny is the extent to which a pattern we expect to see is presented in a surprising and novel way; a way that we didn’t expect. This understanding comes from the conclusions suggested by Pattern Recognition Theory. There are actually books on the subject that explain why things are funny. The more controversial question is whether actually being funny is significant to our relationships and development as a people.

Almost all men and women place humor within the top three traits that are desired in a companion. However, one researcher demonstrated that both sexes find humorous individuals  “less intelligent and trustworthy than their nonhumorous counterparts, but . . .more socially adept. As with most research, the findings in all of these studies require additional research so that we can figure out whether humor is important. While they work on that I want to share two of my most favorite jokes. They are not necessarily very good, but they represent the first jokes that I remember really made me laugh.

When I was nine or ten, I came across this gem. “Have you heard about the new bug spray? It’s called Passionette. It doesn’t actually kill the flies, it just makes them feel sexy so you can swat them two at a time.” Like those two flies, that joke still kills me.

I know you’re not supposed to laugh at your own jokes, but this is the first joke that I made up all by myself.

Guy says to his friend, “Do you know what talent it takes to be a pop star? Well you have to really know how to sing and it helps to play an instrument like the piano or acoustic guitar.  Do you know what talent it takes to be a rock star? Well, you really have to jam on the guitar, scream and run around on stage? Do you know what talent it takes to be a country music star? Well, you have to be able to hold a microphone?”