..starts Marshall Eriksen, brilliantly portrayed by Jason Segel on the hit sitcom – How I Met Your Mother, as he climbs up on stage in a comedy club and proceeds to list out fish names that he finds to be funny (which actually is quite hilarious in context) only to be boo-ed down by his own wife. Another episode from another popular sitcom – The Big Bang Theory comes to mind, where Dr. Sheldon Cooper, in all his genius with a double PhD and everything, attempts to create the funniest joke in the universe using science and statistics only to repeatedly come up with quips that only crack him up.
The point is, humor is a rather funny concept (wow, talk about meta!). It is generally employed as a device to appeal to the masses but it is extremely personal at the same time. What’s funny for me might not be funny for you. What’s funny today might turn to be distasteful (or probably ‘politically incorrect’ ~rolls eyes~) tomorrow. Much like fashion or ‘virginity’, humor is another abstract that has constantly been evolving alongside mankind.
Observing what someone laughs at, what makes them stifle a laugh and what they gently nod with exasperation at, can tell you volumes about what kind of a person they are. The best kind of people are often noticed to possess the ability to laugh at themselves while those who try to appear sophisticated nitpick even the best of jokes. Infants, who are basically clean slates, are a comedian’s best friend as basically anything can make them laugh put in the right tone. Only as they grow up is their funny bone sculpted to specific likings with each growing experience.
Speaking of which, a similar sense of humor is often a signature of compatibility. People who laugh at similar things tend to get along well. No wonder every single list on the internet on how to impress women dictates guys to ‘make her laugh’. However dudes who sit and read such lists to impress women can be seen often overdoing the humor, coming across as weird and getting gloriously shot down.
However, comedy is becoming more and more of an double edged sword these days. Turns out any joke any of you make will offend someone, somewhere on the planet.Comedy, which was devised to make people take things lightly, is being taken way too seriously and that is not really okay. Even though this has been going on since ever, there are always those who sit uptight and grunt when everybody else is rolling on the floor, this is becoming more of an issue in today’s world because, thanks to the advent of the internet, anyone can make a fuss now. That’s kind of the whole reason I started to dissect humor today.I have been shying away from going online all day because, its a Monday and the web is dark and full of spoilers, however I did manage to get a quick peek on Facebook and guess what, that chubby dude from AllIndiaBakchod (the youtube channel who introduced ‘roasting’ to mainstream bollywood) is in some serious hot water after roasting a few high profile celebrities on snapchat. Ironically enough, everyone but those two celebrities, have been seriously offended. 21st century just keeps finding more and more ways to amuse me.
It almost seems a tad hypocritical, what’s accepted and what isn’t. It’s apparently not racist humor if an African-American is part of the crew and is portrayed to laugh it off on screen, it’s not insulting if its done through memes by faceless people with computers but the moment you show your face on camera or there’s a twitter handle next to your comment, may the gods, old and new, have mercy on you.
Jeez, What a time to be alive.
What fourth wall ?! 