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Why do people laugh?
I’ve been trying to answer this question since I was a kid. I would love to hear everyone’s thoughts on this, please help me.
The answer is…there is no answer OR you might get the answer from a 98 yr. old monk in Tibet who thinks Gallagher is a genius. If you go to Tibet could you smash a watermelon on his head or shove a pie in his face for me?...thanks
Well, I did take a course in humor therapy. It seems that laughter relieves a lot of stress and increases endorphins—-natural pain killers. It also enhances our immune system (T-cells and killer T-cells). It reduces our risk of getting cancer, has been proven to shrink tumors, and also improves recovery times for lots of surgery patients. Many hospitals have incorporated “humor” therapy and “Humor Rooms” for people to watch funny films or TV shows. There is a lot more as well. Hey, if it works it just works….
Anything can make us laugh for any reason….therefore there is too many answers to even answer the question.
lily18 had a good point…humor is good therapy. If you don’t believe it, google Norman Cousins and read how the Marx Brothers and Candid Camera improved his conditon. Four years ago THIS WEEK I ended cancer treatments (radiation and chemo) and followed his lead; SNL, Monty Python, Seinfeld, Buster Keaton, Jerry Lewis, etc…I wish FOD were around then! Why do people laugh? LIFE IS COMEDY! AND COMEDY IS LIFE!
I did a research paper on laughter’s beneficial effects and my favorite part was about laughter helping to clear mucus from your throat…. wouldn’t that be much better than coughing… and laugh guard sounds much better than sneeze guard.
That is way too technical macadoughshus, could you break that down a little please?! (S!)
macadoughshus said:
People laugh cuz shit is funny.
Yes, we did this with patients who had suffered strokes. Along with smiling exercises, as in telling them jokes,it actually helped. The smiles helped the facial muscles and laughing helped them clear the airways and prevented pnuemonia.
RandomWhiteGuy said:
I did a research paper on laughter’s beneficial effects and my favorite part was about laughter helping to clear mucus from your throat…. wouldn’t that be much better than coughing… and laugh guard sounds much better than sneeze guard.
That’s really neat. I never considered there might be physiological benefits of the actual act of laughing.
As “Gottadime” said, read Norman Cousins. He used himself as a human guinea pig. I worked in a pain clinic for 3 years, and part of the therapy was a funny movie at least once a week. The recommended dosage is 30 minutes of comedy at least once per day. Really. This was a study done with people in a controlled environment.
Stan_Lozengcock said:
That’s really neat. I never considered there might be physiological benefits of the actual act of laughing.
lily18 said:
As “Gottadime” said, read Norman Cousins. He used himself as a human guinea pig. I worked in a pain clinic for 3 years, and part of the therapy was a funny movie at least once a week. The recommended dosage is 30 minutes of comedy at least once per day. Really. This was a study done with people in a controlled environment.
Stan_Lozengcock said:
That’s really neat. I never considered there might be physiological benefits of the actual act of laughing.
What about what I said lily? Don’t I make a good point too? You make me feel so bad about myself. Just because you’re (way way way way way way way way) older then me, doesn’t mean I don’t know anything, and you know everything…......Does it?
Perhaps a topic should read: “Why DON’T people laugh?” Laughter is so natural, it’s hard to believe when something silly happens and people remain stoic and somber and boring…can I get an amen?
Yes, you do. Really. And you are cute and sweet.I don’t know everything.I was speaking from my RN experience. Spontaneous laughter is a good “cleanser”for the soul, heart and mind.
macadoughshus said:
lily18 said:
As “Gottadime” said, read Norman Cousins. He used himself as a human guinea pig. I worked in a pain clinic for 3 years, and part of the therapy was a funny movie at least once a week. The recommended dosage is 30 minutes of comedy at least once per day. Really. This was a study done with people in a controlled environment.
Stan_Lozengcock said:
That’s really neat. I never considered there might be physiological benefits of the actual act of laughing.
What about what I said lily? Don’t I make a good point too? You make me feel so bad about myself. Just because you’re (way way way way way way way way) older then me, doesn’t mean I don’t know anything, and you know everything…......Does it?
AND in the course of laughing if some milk should come out the nose, or one passes gas (women, ummm fluff, or poot, right?), or tears come to the eyes….that makes it worthwhile even more, like twice maybe.
Chicks laugh at small penises…..................At least thats what I hear.
No one answer for everyone. I tihnk there are levels of humor just as there are levels of conversaiton though.
Lowest level, laughing at other’s mistakes. Next up, laughing at stupid puns that a 6th grader could form. Then sarcasm. Then amusing oddities of the world. Highest level is quick dry wit.
Holy shit, I just googled” levels of humor” to come up with a name for my little assessment, and it exists elswhere! Well, kinds close! Weird.
“Five levels of humor There are five general levels of humor. (I am excluding things like wordplays. My concern is only in the most common type of humor, the kind that makes us feel really good, which requires making people look bad. It may be more appropriate to call it comedy). The higher the level, the more risk is involved. They are as follows:
1. Jokes about imaginary people. These include things like, “Did you hear the one about a guy who goes into a bar…” These are completely safe because the person does not exist, so we don’t have to be afraid anyone will be offended and try to retaliate.
2. Jokes about real people who are famous. This includes all the Monica Lewinsky jokes. Sure, President Clinton and Monica Lewinsky are real, but they don’t know us, and they don’t personally care about us. Because most of us aren’t important enough to hang out with them, they will never know we made fun of them, so we can’t get in trouble.
3. Jokes about people we know, behind their backs. This type of humor is very common. For instance, we sit around the lunchroom talking about a colleague or supervisor who isn’t there at the moment, saying things we wouldn’t dare say in his presence. This is mildly risky because word may get back to him that we made fun of him.
4. Making jokes about ourselves. This is risky because it requires openly admitting our faults to others. Not everyone has the internal strength to do this, because our nature is to try to show how wonderful we are.
5. Making fun of people right in front of their faces. This is the highest form of the art of humor, and involves the most risk. There is the danger that the person will be truly offended. To pull this off successfully, we have to know the person well enough to know he can take a joke without getting upset. But this kind of humor is also the most enjoyable. Good friends can do this with each other. In fact, it’s impossible for two people to be good friends if they can’t allow themselves to make fun of each other. It is also what happens when you go to a comedy club. People pay money to have comedians stand up and make fun of them. Chances are you feel cheated if he made fun of most of the audience but overlooked you. “
I don’t know about you guys, but this sketch group is the reason I’ve been laughing lately… www.funnyordie.com/bghcomedy. These kids are frickin’ hillarious!
people laugh to ease an uneasy tension, to release pain, to share love. And if they laugh most sincerely, life will gather around that person and wonder how and what made happy happen.
Couldn’t it be more simple? I mean, dogs tails wag when they’re happy. I have no idea if there is some serious implication of this. I think life just wanted us to know when people/dogs are having a good time.
The german word..sch?????...meaning people who get pleasure and laugh at others misfortunes like slipping on a banana,etc…I read somewhere 80% of the population suffer from this horrible condition but I think it’s more like 98%...so it’s not my fault if I laugh when you break your neck falling down the stairs..
yeah, one of the hardest laughs i’ve ever had was when i saw my old man slip on some ice in the backyard and break his leg horribly. the joke was on me though, i had to be his pee bucket runner for six months
justjokes101 said:
The german word..sch?????...meaning people who get pleasure and laugh at others misfortunes like slipping on a banana,etc…I read somewhere 80% of the population suffer from this horrible condition but I think it’s more like 98%...so it’s not my fault if I laugh when you break your neck falling down the stairs..
The word is schadenfreude…it has to be a disease in 2008 and maybe people with sick,warped senses of humor[wild guess 98% FOD members] belong in rehab for schadenfreude…ok just a little joke…96% FOD members..I better check my wonderfull health insurance policy… I’m sure I’m covered because my premium just increased another 20%....grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
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