Top-Rated Free Essay
Preview

Humour and wisdom

Satisfactory Essays
245 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Humour and wisdom
Humour or humor (see spelling differences) is the tendency of particular cognitive experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement. The term derives from the humoral medicine of the ancient Greeks
People of all ages and cultures respond to humour. Most people are able to experience humour—i.e., to be amused, to smile or laugh at something funny—and thus are considered to have a sense of humour. Thehypothetical person lacking a sense of humour would likely find the behaviour induced by humour to be inexplicable, strange, or even irrational. Though ultimately decided by personal taste, the extent to which a person finds something humorous depends on a host of variables, including geographical location, culture, maturity, level of education,intelligence and context. For example, young children may favour slapsticksuch as Punch and Judy puppet shows or cartoons such as Tom and Jerry, whose purely physical nature makes it more accessible to them. By contrast, more sophisticated forms of humour such as satire require an understanding of its social meaning and context, and thus tend to appeal to more mature audiences.

wisdom is the judicious application of knowledge.[2] The opposite of wisdom is folly. Synonyms includeprudence, sagacity, discernment, or insight.

Achieving wisdom often requires humor.
Humor is an exploitation of wisdom.

One needs a sense of humor (and proportion) to know what matters. And one must know what matters to manifest wisdom. Much of what we take seriously is a joke that we play on ourselves.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Botton's Arguments

    • 592 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Humorists are people who are skillful in using humor for writing, talking, or acting. Their works bring laughter and elation to people. In Botton’s book, Status Anxiety, he believes that humorists not only entertain audience, but also convey important messages that cannot be said directly. Thus, he argues that humorists play a vital role in the society. In most cases, Botton’s claim is justified in that since the early nineteenth century, humorists express their thoughts about the society through humor. Some of these humorists do play important roles in the society by revealing crisis or events happening during that time period to bring awareness from the society.…

    • 592 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “Humor appear’s to help people’s psychological and physical well being.” It says in Peter McGraw’s essay “The Importance of Humor Research.” It has been proven that it is good for your body to react in such a way to a funny situation but the psychological portion of it is hard to understand. When someone laughs, endorphins are released from the brain and are sent throughout the body creating the feeling of pleasure. It is a healthy alternative to any negative situation, whether it be negative or awkward it can be made easier with a joke here or…

    • 483 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dead Pool Research Paper

    • 1035 Words
    • 5 Pages

    According to actual definition, humor is defined by mood and state of mind. This is plausible because humor isn’t understandable unless you are conscious about the relevance. On that same note, a movie pertaining to humor needs to be careful about what it portrays. If you stick with one type of humor; there is the off-chance of losing appeal and comedic value for the vast majority. The humor induced film, DeadPool, is relatively a good comedy; but has some obvious drawbacks by only attracting those who like crude humor. Making this a comedy that only a few will enjoy.…

    • 1035 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The article “Solve That Problem with Humor” by William D. Ellis discusses the importance of humor. He begins by pointing out that being funny is a better way to win arguments. Ellis further argues that humor can be used to solve many other everyday complicated situations that we face in relationships, for example, giving constructive feedback. Later in the article, Ellis talks about how a funny joke is the greatest way to reduce conflict and help to let the people guard down. By the end of the article, Ellis discusses the idea that in some rare situation joking can save people from darkness. In Viktor E Frankl’s experience stated that joking support him to go through the tough time. The most significant idea in this article is humor…

    • 453 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    By maintaining a sense of humor where possible can encourage an individual to relax and alleviate stress, especially if they are having a difficult home life or experiencing a challenging period of their life. If they are experiencing a difficult time it is important to be considerate.…

    • 311 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    | The quality of being amusing, through the use of irony, pun, sarcasm, satire etc…

    • 458 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Humorists

    • 401 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In his 2004 book, Status Anxiety, Alain De Botton argues that the chief aim of humorists is not merely to entertain but to convey with impunity, messages that might be dangerous or impossible to state directly. He believes humorists are allowed by society to say things that others won’t or do not want to express, thus serving a vital role in a functioning society.…

    • 401 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Humor and Persuasion

    • 1172 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The actor John Cleese once said, "If I can get you to laugh with me, you like me better, which makes you more open to my ideas. And if I can persuade you to laugh at the particular point I make, by laughing at it you acknowledge its truth.” (Mortensen, 2004) Humor disarms an audience, making them more likely to open up to you. In a book by Kurt Mortensen, called “Maximum influence: the 12 universal laws of power persuasion”, he stated:…

    • 1172 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Short Stories

    • 1893 Words
    • 8 Pages

    "Humor." Dictionary.com | Find the Meanings and Definitions of Words at Dictionary.com. Web. 11 Sept. 2010. <http://dictionary.reference.com/>.…

    • 1893 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Next, the relationship between wisdom and folly must also be taken into account. Wisdom is the definition of being wise in life. In The Essence of the Old Testament, Ed Hindson and Gary Yates praise wisdom in every ways (265). Opposite of wisdom is folly, which is a character of someone who understands what is best for him or her but chooses the foolish route.…

    • 833 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Humor is often used as an escape, a way for people to cope. It’s a way to connect with others and get along on this more intimate level. Humor is apart of our language as a way to lightheartedly show how we feel. More importantly it brings us together. It’s like a beaming light in a shadow of darkness, and it never goes unnoticed. Humorists can say things that others cannot, and get away with it too. Humor is not only found in obvious jokes, but in the very basic things in life. I catch myself laughing or finding humor in bizarre things, things that should make me upset but instead are so unbelievable that they are funny. Humor comes in varieties that are essential to life.…

    • 420 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Humorist Paper

    • 655 Words
    • 3 Pages

    There is simply no other form of entertainment or medium that can be as effective as humor. Humor is something we would all like to see or hear and what that says for humorist that there will always be an audience wanting to hear what they…

    • 655 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Humor In The Simpson

    • 534 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Humor is the act of saying something funny and bringing laughter to others when doing so. Humor acts as a catalyst of what people think but will not say. Humor is a part of life. Humor is a necessity for free speech and free thought for that matter. Humor can be divided into various sub sections from cartoonist, stand-up comics, satirical writers, and hosts of television programs- just to name a few, as de Botton states.…

    • 534 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The Power of Laughter

    • 2176 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Laughter is such an intricate and explosive subject that in discussing it some degree of oversimplification is inevitable. The muddle of various approaches, the innumerable categories, and the rancorous critical in-fighting connected with this topic make it necessary to be as discriminating and, at the same time, as eclectic as is sensibly possible.…

    • 2176 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Humour

    • 504 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Humour is a phenomenon which is influenced by culture. It can be difficult to determine what aspects define a certain sense of humour. A nation’s wit is linked to the historical development of the country. How funny somebody finds a certain incident depends on many factors including age, personal experience, level of education and geographical location. Therefore humour is something which is not always transferrable in another country. What somebody from one area may find hilarious may not be amusing at all to somebody from another location. Whether or not someone gets a joke is determined by their interpretation, filtered by the cultural context.…

    • 504 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays