Definition Essay On Humor

Analysis of Dave Chappelle's For What It's Worth Stand-Up Comedy Dave Chappelle’s stand-up comedy can be raunchy, grotesque, and

Recently, cigarettes have been getting a bad rap. No one seems to understand that the real problem at hand is not the negative effects of smoking cigarettes, but those who abstain from smoking cigarettes. These people are nothing but a nuisance, a lousy bunch of no-gooders that just want to ruin your fun. In fact, smoking cigarettes is an activity that the entire population can benefit from. The world relies on the production and consumption of tobacco, and there are many positives of smoking that outweigh the negatives. For example, smokers dedicate a large portion of their life buying packs upon packs of cigarettes, which in turn gives a huge profit to the country. Surely if you consider yourself a

Norman Cousins said, “Laughter is a powerful way to tap positive emotions" (Moss 1). Humor is studied by many researchers in sociology, psychology, art, literature, and medicine. When people wonder whether humor aids in areas other than health, a treasure trove of possible benefits to the learning or educational community is opened up. Humor can be used as a tool to promote learning.Research speaks to the many benefits of humor in healing, to its benefits in the classroom or boardroom, from reducing stress of students or employees, to boosting self-esteem and feelings of camaraderie. Additionally, studies show that those who use humor to convey a message are often more favorably perceived. Humor helps deliver the presenter's message to

From the very beginning, Smith introduces her father’s favorite hobby; comedy. As it says, “my father had few enthusiasms, but he loved comedy” (1). She then goes on explaining the uniqueness of comedy, how it gave her father freedom and that their is no division of social status when it comes to comedy; comedy was and will always be true freedom. She informs the reader of several British comedians and comedy history, mentioning how they all had different styles. For example, one comedian would continuously make fun of himself, other would make fun of their culture, and social status. On the other hand, she also mentions that people do not have to be funny to go on stage. “In the world of comedy, if you are absolutely determined to stand on a stage for five minutes with a mike in your hand, someone in London will let you do it, if only once” (7).

Modern society allows humorists to touch upon offensive topics without receiving much criticism. As Alain de Botton claimed in his 2004 book, Status Anxiety, humorists’ role is not merely to entertain but “to convey with impunity messages that might be dangerous or impossible to state directly.” De Botton’s argument proves legitimate. Many humorists, such as cartoonists and television hosts, decide to use their humor as a tool to prove an idea or express a belief that cannot be voiced candidly in public.

Most of the time that results because they are usually the ones you talk to the most so eventually

During his stand up he will usually talk about an experience he has or something his audience can relate to and he will sort of act the event as using different imitations of people in the events adding comedic effects. He has also been known to use politicals topics to make jokes but his humor is not the cleanest kind. But, he has received backlash over the years for the type of jokes he makes especially the political ones which some people took to heart and disagreed, but this is to be expected as no comedy is humorous to

The sun’s rays somehow find a way to penetrate the clouds on a dismal Saturday morning. When I turn to see what time it is, a sharp pain hits me like a truck. The lower left-hand side of my body is purple and blue, with the ugly yellowing of the skin. The clouds somehow symbolize what the bruise looks like. It’s about the size of a small apple, an upside to being the size of a softball a week ago. As I walk to the bathroom to check it in the mirror, I make sure that my brother and mom are still asleep so I can have my privacy.

When I first glanced at the prompts and saw the one that asked me to speak of a passion of mine, I knew that this was definitely the prompt I had to choose. My passion is my love for comedy. Comedy has always been a huge part of my life and continues to be to this day. It has encompassed my life for as long as I can remember. Whether I was looking to others to make me laugh, developing laughter from being around my family, or myself making others laugh the memories are embedded in my mind. With these memories I have come to the conclusion that I have always found a way to make others laugh. I really don’t know if I make people laugh to gain friends or some other reason; whatever it may be, it has sparked a realization that this is something I love to do.

“The Substitute Teacher,” allows viewers to question how individuals perceive humor and how it potentially causes laughter. According to Mark Goddard, comedy is considered a healthy outlet toward the process of developing relationships and coping with other individuals and the obstacles one faces in life (Goddard 1). Viewers of “The Substitute Teacher,” notice how Mr. Garvey relies on his past experiences to be capable of handling situations. Mr. Garvey ‘s decision

One of the types of humor he uses is self deprecation. He is a short man, and one way he deals with that is making jokes about it himself before anyone else can so that he doesn’t get his feelings hurt or made fun of by others. He also uses sad but true humor. He makes jokes about things that are maybe more uncomfortable for some people. He uses the things that makes us different like skin tone, weight, height, age, and many other things so that we can laugh at them.

He uses satire to make fun of stereotypes and old wise sayings about people getting up

Manbearpig: Half Man, Half Bear, Half Pig, but All Global Warming? South Park is a popular animated comedy series written by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. While the episodes of South Park are always humorous on the surface, each show usually has a deeper, much more profound meaning and moral. One episode of South Park entitled Manbearpig, named after the monster in the episode, has a particularly potent deeper meaning. On the surface, the episode pokes fun at monster stories, politics, and specifically Al Gore. Deeper down, however, this monster story can be read as a national allegory alluding to the dangers of global warming, the problems with the politics behind global warming, and the eventual doom we will all face

Imagine a vast concert hall filled with people. The audience excitedly clamor in anticipation for the main star of this event. The event they paid so much money for, cleared up time in their schedule for, spent time getting to the event for. As the lights dim, the spotlight shines on the center stage. Then an average person emerges on the stage with a thousand eyes’ on him. He only has with a microphone in his hand. Just a typical person, with a normal gait and normal sense of fashion. However, after speaking a few words in the microphone, the crowd bursts into a cacophony of laughter. No matter how ordinary or extraordinary the person, entertainment through humor is universal. Utilizing humor, an extensive language of amusement, to open perspectives and challenge what is conceived right or wrong can be impactful- if done correctly. Dave Sedaris accomplishes that goal when he uses humor to illustrate his dilemma because of his identity. Despite being an accomplished successful comedian, author, radio show host, certain people look down at him as just a homosexual freak. Rather than gravely addressing his opposition, Sedaris utilizes a jovial yet relatable anecdote called “Chicken in a Henhouse”. Incorporating ideas from Ardian Bardon’s “The Philosophy of Humor”, specifically, the three theories of humor: superiority theory, incongruity theory and relief theory, Sedaris argues that the American public stereotypes homosexuals as pedophiles and ,as a result, they feel

Humour and satire are two concepts that are both wide ranging and diverse, from dark, to light hearted, with each producing a different effect. Humour in the main, is something that is used to please the audience, its function is to invoke laughter amongst its audience. Satire is used to create a comical critical view of the subject at hand, this can range from a light hearted comical way, to a judgemental way, with each style giving the text a different meaning, however this does not mean that satire cannot be humorous, which can evident in the use of parody and irony within texts. Within literature both concepts play an important role to how the text is viewed, humour can include word play, grammatical jokes, to even inside jokes with the author and reader, and with satire, including that of irony and parody, with each style and type delivering humour in its own unique way. These differing styles of humour can be found in a variety of forms including Jasper Forde’s The Eyre Affair (2001), with its silly atmosphere, word play and grammar jokes, and the use of light hearted satire and parody to brighten up the text, and Julian Barnes A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters (1989), where there is a more serious atmosphere, with a more critical, satirical eye on history and characters, as well as using irony to achieve its comical effect, and the position of the world. Each text is humorous and satirical in its own right, and with each author using different techniques to