Section 1.1
Defining Humor and Its Relationship to Laughter
Philosophers have long tried to define humor, and until recently they treated it as roughly the same thing as laughter. Yet research describes laughter as a social emotion, occurring most often in interactions, rather than only a product of humor.The social life of laughter - PMCHowever laughter is a social emotion, occurring most often in interactions, where it is associated with bonding, agreement, affection and emotional regulation.
Open sourceHumor | Internet Encyclopedia of PhilosophyThe philosophical study of humor has been focused on the development of a satisfactory definition of humor, which until recently has been treated as roughly co-extensive with laughter.
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Why the two get confused
The word itself has a short history. The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy reports, citing the Oxford English Dictionary, that "humor" arose in the 17th century from speculation about bodily humors affecting temperament. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy adds that the word was not used in its current sense of funniness until the 18th century, so traditional discussions were about laughter or comedy.Philosophy of Humor (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)The word humor was not used in its current sense of funniness
until the 18th century, we should note, and so traditional
discussions were about laughter or comedy.
Open source That helps explain why earlier work blurred the two.
What counts as humor?
There is no agreed answer. After about 2,500 years of discussion, there is little consensus about what constitutes humor. The standard analysis sorts theories into three families: incongruity theorists see humor as a response to ambiguity, impossibility, irrelevance or inappropriateness; Hobbes, the paradigmatic superiority theorist, said it arises from a sudden glory felt on recognizing our supremacy over others; and relief theorists such as Freud and Spencer saw it as a way to release or save energy generated by repression. These theories are not necessarily rivals, since they may simply focus on different aspects of humor.
How laughter differs
Observational studies reported by Scott and colleagues find that most laughter occurs in conversation and is associated mostly with statements and comments rather than jokes, and people are about 30 times more likely to laugh with someone else than alone. Researchers also distinguish reactive, involuntary laughter, driven by outside events, from more deliberate laughter that serves as a communicative act. Laughter can follow jokes, tickling, or substances such as nitrous oxide, and sometimes arises from embarrassment, surprise or confusion, as in nervous or courtesy laughter.Laughter - WikipediaIt may ensue from jokes, tickling, and other stimuli completely unrelated to psychological state, such as nitrous oxide.
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