This Book is No Joke!: The Critical Role of Humor in Communication

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- Taken literally, the term humor is borrowed from the Latin, according to Wilfred Funk, the author of Word Origins and Their Romantic Stories. Funk states, "We borrowed the term bodily from the Latin, and in that language humor meant a liquid. Apparently the ancient philosophers believed that four liquids entered into the make-up of our bodies, and that our temperament (Latin temperamentum, mixture) was determined by the proportions of four fluids or humors, which are blood, phlegm, bile, and black bile." If one happened to have an overplus of "blood," the first of the humors, they were of the optimistic and sanguine temperament (Latin sanguis, blood). A generous portion of phlegm, on the other hand, made one "phlegmatic," or slow and unexcitable. Too much yellow bile and one saw the world through a "bilious" eye, and since the word "bile" is chole in Latin, one were apt to be choleric and short-tempered. The fourth humor, and the non-existent black bile, was a little special invention of the ancient physiologists. A too heavy proportion of this made one "melancholy" for in Latin melancholia meant "the state of having too much black bile." Any imbalance of these humors, therefore, made a person unwell and perhaps eccentric. Over the years the word humor took on the meaning of "oddness," and a humorous individual was one who we would now call a crank. Finally, the word was applied to those who could provoke laughter at the oddities and the incongruities of life. Humor is a compassionate account of human beings caught in the drama of living. Laboring under no delusions of being an etiologist, I would suggest that a common definition of a sense of humor would include not only the individual who has the ability to provoke laughter, but has the ability to appreciate the incongruity which ultimately generates laughter. The close relationship between a healthy person (humorous), and laughter, further explains the inappropriate juxtaposition of humor and comedy. Acknowledging Funk's contribution in defining humor, I would be remiss if I didn't provide his insight attesting to the origin of the word comedy in order to complete the distinction of the two; humor and comedy. According to Funk, in the Greece of two millenniums ago, a komos was a festival with music and dancing that lasted until after supper and ended with a torchlight parade. These drunken celebrations were devised by Dorians, a sturdy Hellenic tribe noted for their bawdy humor. The earlier revels were characterized by absolute license, as also were the early comedies. The chief singer at the party was the komoidos, or comedian, and from this Greek term we derive the word comedy. I'm not sure to whom I am beholden, the Greeks, the Latins, or Funk. In any event, the distinction between humor and comedy becomes clear. This should be comforting to those individuals who do not relish the "lamp shade command performance" usually associated with comedians, and yet covet the rewards associated with a keen sense of humor. There appears to be a limited relationship between the two words, humor and comedy, when taken literally. When confronted to cite the difference between the two, I usually reference the former Tonight show as an example. Johnny Carson was the obvious "comic", while Ed McMahon may in fact possess the desired "sense of humor." Psychologist Allen Klein, a nationally known lecturer on health and humor, and the author of The Healing Power of Humor, states; "Humor is more than joke telling. Humor is an attitude, a way of looking at life. It's very powerful because it gives us a different perspective." There is a warmth and non-judgmental disposition which radiates from an individual with a well developed sense of humor. They are sensitive, receptive, and accepting of others and their ideas. The reasons for this will be discussed at length, later in the chapter. This perceived sensitivity, or sixth sense is what culminate

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