Just Joshin' #99 (Humor)
1 Family Photo:
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Why did Joshua have no parents?
Because he was the son of Nun.
This joke is not funny.
Its premise describes some sad orphan situation. Its punchline relies on bible trivia.
It was also my favorite joke when I was 6. This is worse when I think about confused strangers assuming the setup was autobiographical.
I'm lucky we didn't send kids to therapy back then.
It reminds me of another piece of poorly constructed humor. In Albert Brooks' Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World, for reasons contrived by the plot, Brooks' character runs around India repeating a line and seeing who laughs:
Why is there no Halloween in India?
Because they took away the Gandhi.
Nobody laughs. As Roger Ebert pointed out in his 2006 movie review, "anyone young enough to find the joke funny...wouldn't know who Gandhi was." And vice-versa.
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Humor's subjective, but some jokes are still better than others. There's good humor and bad humor too.
At its best, humor brings us together. We smile through shared context - a gif is funny because it reminds us of a movie scene we both like, a comic's observation unites us in noticing some everyday life absurdity.
The laughter identifies we're all in the same tribe.
Not all humor is like that though. Put-down humor says, "I am in my tribe because you are not. I am better than you." Sarcasm says, "I am better than everything," Not all funny is the same. Laughter for the sake of laughter is empty.
I'm not sure how to guide Calvin and Lawrence's sense of humor. How is one's sensibility here even formed?
I want to guard them from jokes at other's expense. I want to shield them from the allure of sarcasm.
Maybe I can do that while they're still young, but for how long? I can't control everyone they're exposed to. How do you police other people's jokes? How do you ask those people to also be mindful of their humor?
Anyways, the history of abstinence-base education efficacy is somewhat problematic. I'll have to come up with a better approach.
1 Dad Joke:
Calvin Jokes
Sid the Science Kid is Calvin's favorite TV show. It has a clear format: Sid wakes up, he has breakfast with his parents, he goes to school, he finds his friends, he learns something, he goes home. There's a part at the end where Sid and his friends gather to tell jokes about whatever the episode's theme happens to be.
Calvin like retelling Sid’s jokes. Sometimes he mixes them up and accidentally creates anti-jokes, which I sometimes find more funny than the originals.
Guess which joke below is from Sid the Kid, and which one is Calvin's version:
Highlights:
Funny Thoughts
On Sarcasm by Andrew Bosworth
It was when I noticed this last point that I decided that sarcasm was not for me. Sarcasm “works” because it alludes to a critique without ever actually making it.
Sarcasm does nothing to advance our understanding of the world around us or help us improve it.
Podcasts
Working It Out and Good One are high quality podcasts on the art/craft of jokes/comedy/standup. Give them a try, if that’s a thing you’re into:
Working it Out - Mike Birbiglia
Suggestions: (Ira Glass), (Jim Gaffigan), (Gary Gulman)
Suggestions: (Nate Bargatze), (Cristela Alonzo), (Gary Gulman)
iamJoshKnox Highlight:
Words that Matter:
A few weeks ago, I posted a collection of essays that matter to me.
The awesome people at Matter republished my post in their newsletter!
Also, my book is still available on Amazon here – or reply to this email and it would be a pleasure to gift you a copy.
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Grab some time on my calendar to share a funny story from this week:
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Until next week,
iamJoshKnox
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Josh Knox
Hi! I am Josh Knox. Read more of me here: 👇
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