How to learn to joke in any situation: tips and examples. How to learn to make funny jokes in any situation: useful tips

Why does a person need to be funny? This question can be answered in different ways. But, one way or another, any of the answers will lead us to the fact that humor is important in any area of ​​our lives, and is also highly valued by others. If a person has a sense of humor and wit, life is much easier for him than for someone who does not.

People with a poorly developed sense of humor are often rational and straightforward, which is why they often have difficulties with social adaptation and communication. For such people, even minor troubles end in stress. But if there is a sense of humor, then psychological defense mechanisms perform their functions much more effectively. Agree: how nice it would be if we could always easily perceive what is happening and find something funny in any situation? This is one of the reasons why many people want to develop a sense of humor.

But the benefit is not only that people who know how to laugh in the broad sense of the word perceive even the most difficult life situations much more calmly, but also that they establish contact with other people faster and easier. And this can be called the second, but no less important reason. Who do you think is easier to communicate with: a shy, insecure and timid guy or someone who knows how to make funny jokes in a company, laugh at themselves, amuse them, and attract the attention of the opposite sex with a cool joke? In our opinion, the answer is obvious.

The benefits of a developed sense of humor can be listed for a very long time, but we think that the two discussed are quite enough to draw certain conclusions, although we will talk about the benefits of humor later. In the meantime, let's think: is it even possible to develop a sense of humor and wit? Does a person who has never been able to joke or was generally characterized by gloom and lack of cheerfulness have a chance to change and let positivity into their consciousness? We have bad news for you - this won't happen overnight. But we also have good news - if you want, you can do this, and you don’t have to move mountains!

Of course, there is no doubt that a sense of humor is transmitted in genes. However, this is not at all a reason to give up on yourself if your ancestor was not Mikhail Zadornov or Charlie Chaplin. After a person is born, the development of a sense of humor already depends on the characteristics of the environment where he grows up, the subtleties of upbringing and other conditions. But we do not set ourselves the task of getting into the very jungle of influences that reality has on human consciousness.

We want to say that anyone at almost any age can develop a sense of humor and learn to be funny. All that is required for this is to learn the basic laws of the comic as such, and study practical information, including techniques, methods and methods for developing a sense of humor. And this information is right in front of you - in the course, the introduction to which you are now reading.

What is a sense of humor

A sense of humor call a psychological feature of a person, which consists in identifying all kinds of contradictions in the surrounding world and their subsequent assessment from a comic point of view. It begins to manifest itself and develop already in early childhood under the influence of the environment, comic manifestations of other people, funny situations and other prerequisites. If there are no such prerequisites, a person develops a straightforward character, which can lead to many social and psychological difficulties.

Thus, we can conclude that a sense of humor allows a person to:

• Easier, problems and difficult life circumstances
• Find common language with others faster
• Find like-minded people in society
• Don't be too serious

Assessments have been made (and continue to be made) from the perspective of psychology, sociology, linguistics, anthropology and other scientific disciplines. And among hundreds of theories of humor, there are those that say that the task of a sense of humor is to relieve tension and stress, as well as encourage the search for new interpretations of life situations. Based on these theories, all jokes are accompanied by increasing attention as they are presented and a subsequent release when the joke ends. The reason for the emergence of new interpretations is that jokes entail unexpected associations of unrelated and even conflicting circumstances.

There are also theories in which humor serves as a means of defusing aggression and negative emotions. Although in certain circles, for example, among military personnel, doctors, officials, criminals, etc. has its own, special humor, from which it follows that the sense of humor is to one degree or another subjective.

In general, a sense of humor should be understood as the ability to see the funny in situations, people, environments, stories, etc. The protective function of humor is highlighted by almost all researchers.

• Cognitive function. Humor is interpreted as a means of understanding the world and mastering ideas about it. Humor, which is considered to have the greatest educational value, shows reality in its true light, without deforming its phenomena or trying to modify it. The cognitive component of humor deepens a person’s knowledge about the world and other people, teaches them to identify differences between the content of phenomena and their form, and also warns against hasty conclusions.
• Entertainment function. Everything is simple here - humor has the ability to lift your spirits and cause laughter and positive emotions.
• Therapeutic function. It consists in the ability of humor to be a consolation for a person in his personal disappointments and failures. Self-irony is a form of protection both from outside influence and from oneself, i.e. from your own pessimism, despondency, doubts, etc.

But it would not be superfluous to say about another function of humor, which the famous German poet and playwright Gotthold Ephraim Lessing once spoke about:

• Educational function. Healthy humor serves as a measure of moral development, and therefore through it one can instruct, teach and educate children.

All this is just basic information about the sense of humor, and if you go into this topic in more detail, you can collect a large amount of data looking at it from all sides and angles. If you are interested in this topic, the Internet and libraries with dozens of encyclopedias are at your service. We will continue the conversation about the practical side of using a sense of humor.

A sense of humor in practice

After all that has been said above, you probably will not argue with the fact that a sense of humor is one of the most important qualities that a person should have. But it still makes sense to say a few more words about its practical application.

First of all, I would like to point out that it allows you to do it very quickly, and it doesn’t matter: it’s a girl or guy you like, a potential business partner, a work colleague, or a simple plumber who disgruntledly came into the house to change the toilet.

A person who can skillfully and colorfully joke will always be distinguished by his wit and attract attention, start a company, and bring a positive attitude to society. Among other things, a sense of humor can also be attributed to the qualities of a leader and someone who will often, if not always, be listened to and his opinion taken into account.

But having a sense of humor means not only being able to joke and make wisecracks, but also understanding the humor of other people, being receptive to jokes directed at oneself, having the ability to behave comically, fend off caustic remarks and save face in any tricky situation. It is also advisable to have the skill of expressing humor in writing and even in drawings - these are tangible bonuses for someone who has a good tongue.

A practical sense of humor is also the ability to distinguish one form of the comic from another. For example, can you distinguish irony from sarcasm, jokes from banter, stand-up comedy from miniatures? An experienced comedian is familiar with many comic forms, genres and techniques.

As a result, in order to safely consider yourself a witty person with a good sense of humor, you need to have a number of certain qualities, namely: quick reaction, developed thinking (by the way, take a look), an ironic attitude and a positive perception of the environment, self-confidence. For some, a sense of humor is a gift, but for people who work on themselves, it is just another skill that they are able to master. But this needs to be done not anyhow, not spontaneously, not chaotically, but regularly, consciously and systematically. If you have firmly decided for yourself that you want to learn how to joke and improve the quality of your sense of humor, then you are on the right path - we will tell you about everything you need to do.

How to learn it

There is no doubt: the ability to develop a sense of humor and use it to benefit yourself and others does not come out of nowhere. Of course, some people are great at humor and entertaining others and themselves from an early age, because heredity is heredity. Such people, by the way, very often devote their lives to humor and become professional comedians, and they don’t have to learn to be funny (although even they hone their skills and improve their skills, as they say now). The rest need to work to “catch fish out of the pond”, try, study and develop. But there is no need to perceive this process as an impassable obstacle - you can learn everything, and on your own - if you have the desire.

As with any other topic, there are two sides to developing a sense of humor:

• Theoretical side - includes information of a theoretical nature required to create a basis for practice
• Practical side - the use of theoretical information in practical activities

The difficulty, however, often lies in the fact that many people, having mastered the theory, give up what they started halfway and never move on to practice. And the reason here lies not only in the individual characteristics of each person. The fact is that any training course, any training, any theoretical material should be created with a basis for subsequent practice. Otherwise, knowledge will simply gather dust on the shelves of memory, become covered with cobwebs, be pushed into far corners and will not bring any benefit.

Guided by this idea, we have developed the presented course on developing a sense of humor. We pursue two goals: the first is to provide you with high-quality material for reading and studying, and the second is to teach you how to use it in life. Therefore, each of the course lessons is distinguished by a two-way focus: they contain both theory, without which practice is simply impossible, and practice - tips, recommendations, exercises and techniques - tools for moving from words to deeds.

Want to test your knowledge?

If you want to test your theoretical knowledge on the topic of the course and understand how suitable it is for you, you can take our test. For each question, only 1 option can be correct. After you select one of the options, the system automatically moves on to the next question.

Lessons in humor

We already have a lot of courses and trainings in our arsenal, and we have good experience in developing and compiling training methods. It has already become a tradition for the 4Brain team to conduct case studies, systematize the material, select the most important and interesting from a huge number of sources, adapt the received data for easy perception and quick application, and give it all a beautiful form. We did exactly the same thing now.

In the next six lessons we will look at the most significant topics in our opinion regarding the development of a sense of humor, the most effective techniques, tips from professional comedians and easy-to-use exercises.

How to take classes

As already mentioned, our humor lessons are completely adapted for practical activities, and are also suitable for anyone who wants to develop a sense of humor. However, our task is to give you the base, and only you are responsible for what you do with it. We are talking about the fact that you can take at least a hundred courses and fill your head with a bunch of information, but still not do anything worthwhile in your life. Therefore, try to project everything from the area of ​​knowledge into the area of ​​​​action.

To make it more convenient for you to complete the course, break this process into several stages. You can do this - study two lessons during the week:

• One day - learning the first lesson
• Two days - applying knowledge in practice
• One day - rest
• Further - according to the same scheme

Of course, this is just an example, and you have every right to come up with your own system that is more suitable for your employment. The only thing we want to point out again is that it is important to go through the lessons very carefully and with an understanding of why you are doing it.

As for the practical component of the course (exercises, techniques, tips, recommendations, etc.), they imply not just a single repetition, but multiple repetitions - this is the only way you can fully master the material, consolidate and hone the acquired skills.

Try to develop a useful habit of reminding yourself that you are developing a sense of humor and learning to joke, then in real life you will not have any problems with experiments on this topic. With practice, the application of knowledge will become automatic, and the need for careful self-control will disappear by itself.

We would like to complete the introduction to the course with statements from famous personalities about the sense of humor. For some, they will become an additional incentive for self-development, while others will simply enjoy them and broaden their horizons.

Quotes from famous people about a sense of humor

“If I didn’t have a sense of humor, I would have committed suicide long ago.” Mahatma Gandhi

“Imagination is given to man to console him for what he does not have, and a sense of humor to console him for what he does have.” Oscar Wilde

“There are three manifestations of God on earth: nature, love and a sense of humor. Nature helps you live, love helps you survive, and a sense of humor helps you survive.” Mikhail Zadornov

“I really appreciate a sense of humor in people, because often it is our only weapon against all the nasty things and injustices of life” Pierre Richard

“If a person is not considered handsome, he can still be successful if he has a few jokes in his pocket. And lots of pockets" Andy Warhole

“A person loses everything if he loses his sense of humor” Ayn Rand

"Tell me what you laugh at and I'll tell you who you are" Marcel Pagnol

“Whoever lacks a sense of humor is filled with resentment” Sergey Vedenye

“A sense of humor is a great thing. Going through life without a sense of humor is as absurd as riding in a carriage without springs.» Henry Ward Beecher

In order to properly develop your sense of humor, you must first understand what this humor is and “what it is eaten with.”

A person spends most of his time in one circle of people. These could be either relatives, friends, or colleagues. The purpose of communicating with different categories is different. Each of these layers has different interests and terminology. It would not be appropriate to joke with a philologist on purely medical topics, and also use the characteristic black humor of doctors. They simply will not understand you and may even mistake you for a rude and callous person.

First, analyze what interests your constant companions and try to develop your wit in this area.

And to become interesting for all people, think about what jokes would be universal for both a miner and a teacher.

And also be interested not only in generally accepted ones, but also expand your knowledge about certain specific jokes that are understandable only for a specific group of people. Then you can easily find a reason to joke with any person.

Play with words.

The simplest and easiest way to bring a smile to your interlocutor’s face is to play on words.

You can add a dose of modernity to already established sayings,

for example, “no matter how much you feed the wolf, everything hangs on the internet.”

Also adding to the comedy is the discrepancy between thoughts and words.

More than one housewife has had to say: “I just have to wash the borscht and cook the things.”

Don't be afraid to experiment with words and their meanings. Play with them like a child plays with cubes, add them, rearrange them, change them.

Be ironic.

Irony will help you become sharp-tongued.

It is best if you learn to use it first on yourself, otherwise inappropriate use of it may offend another person.

Irony appears where there is a collapse between a person's expectations and the actual state of affairs.

Appreciate the ability to use irony. It will often help not only to become a more witty person, but also to survive difficult moments in life.

Make fun of yourself.

If you don’t know a person well and need to keep the conversation going, then make fun of yourself.

Don’t be afraid to seem funny; it’s not at all scary to show some of your little failures to people and laugh at it yourself.

It will be much worse if you hide this failure within yourself and spin it to a universal scale.

Make fun of yourself; others will happily laugh at such a joke and, as a rule, will not take it seriously. So your reputation will not collapse.

Look for commonality in the opposite and talk about it.

When you want to have a fun, long, witty conversation and, most importantly, about nothing, then try to find common features in vodka and a person.

Develop an alternative view of things, look at the familiar from a different angle, give things interesting characteristics.

The main thing is to make a joke on time.

The timeliness of a joke is already 50 percent of its success.

If you miss even a few seconds, then the situation will lose its relevance, and your wit will seem inappropriate.

React instantly while the situation is only at its zenith. Don’t be upset if you miss a good moment and a good “sharp” answer appears in your head. Remember it, this will happen again, and many different humorous situations await you.

Also, the concept of “making a joke on time” should be understood about the appropriateness of humor. You may feel funny in any situation, but this does not mean that the other person is also having fun. There is no need to try to cheer up a person at a funeral with some “sharp” phrases. Jokes on a religious topic are also very subtle and are perceived differently by different people. This also applies to politics.

Collect jokes, witticisms and anecdotes.

To make it easier for you to generate new humorous phrases and remarks in your head, try to memorize funny quotes from books, films, and other people.

And also learn to retrieve them from your memory in time.

Watch humorous programs, read jokes, observe those around you.

Coming up with funny jokes, amusing friends and being considered an interesting and witty person among them is possible even for those who are sure that they have a bad sense of humor. Nevertheless, it can be perfectly developed, just like learning to joke, if there is a desire. A successful phrase, a funny expression, a well-placed joke will make you popular in any company, people will be pleased to communicate and do business with you. It turns out that learning to joke funny and appropriately is just right for creating a reputation for yourself as an interesting and witty person.

How can you learn to joke well?

It turns out that any humor, even spontaneous, is born thanks to special techniques. Some people make jokes by themselves, they don’t know that they are using a certain method. And you will recognize several of them at once and be able to entertain the company with your own creations!

First technique - “Irony”

Irony is built on contrast. If the conversation is about something ordinary, ordinary and some obvious conclusion suggests itself, we create a contrast. For example, we are talking about the weather, it is bad and, therefore, everyone is unpleasant and disgusted. And you say - it’s time to go swimming and sunbathe.

Second technique - “Joining the unlike”

Some signs or characteristics may be different. You list the well-known features or properties of the subject of conversation and add at the end something that stands out from the general “beautiful” series and therefore becomes funny. Here is an example of such a joke: a good car should be comfortable, fast and a foreign car.

Third technique - “Substitution of meaning”

There are quite a few words in the Russian language that are written and pronounced the same, but have several meanings. For example: a braid (sand) and a braid (braided), a pen (for children) and a pen (writing), etc.

As an example, popular jokes about Stirlitz:

Stirlitz lit the stove all night. The next morning she drowned.

Stirlitz noticed a blow from the window. He closed the window - the barrel disappeared.

Fourth technique - “Replacing words”

People constantly use well-known, “catchphrase” expressions. If you replace one word in them with another, but similar in meaning, it turns out very funny, especially if the new word fits the situation exactly. For example: crazy about fat, crazy about cholesterol, etc.

Fifth technique - “Switching places”

This is the easiest way to create jokes. Just swap words in a sentence or the first letters in words. The faster you react, the funnier your changeling will be. An example is the well-known phrase from the film “Wedding in Malinovka”: “The horses are drunk, the boys are harnessed.”

How can you learn to make appropriate jokes if you can’t come up with anything?

A joke is good when it is said at the right time, and if you still find it difficult to create your own humorous works, use ready-made ones. Just learn funny quotes, jokes and tell them at every opportunity. You will become someone who is considered a cheerful person and the life of the party, so do not neglect this method, it is also very good.

And finally, about the rules of good entertainment:

There is no girl who, when compiling a list of basic requirements for the guy of her dreams, would forget to mention having a sense of humor. However, you already know that being the wittiest in any company is very pleasant and honorable. Like any other skill, the ability to joke can be developed. A sense of humor is just a tricky muscle that can be pumped up. Perhaps, with the help of our article, you will have time to do this by the next beach season.

5 surefire ways to say something funny

Humor only seems to be a free, spontaneous and exuberant form of creativity. If you wipe away the stupid smile from your face and analyze with a serious look what exactly causes laughter, you can isolate ready-made formulas for what is funny. Here are the most common and easiest to use of them. And although they are all used, if you take them into service, it will greatly help your boyfriend.

1 They were swapped

The most mechanical and simple way to create a joke (or at least its semblance) is to swap two elements. These can be letters in a word ( president - drezipent), letters in the phrase ( sweaty hands - mouth farts), words in a sentence ( hit a squirrel's eye from a hundred meters away - hit a hundred meters from a squirrel's distance) and therefore similar ( Fedor Konyukhov - groom Fedorov). The main secret in applying this formula is speed. I heard a phrase suitable for a changeling, immediately turned it over - earned a smile ( “And don’t forget to wash the dishes and throw out the trash!” - "Fine! I’ll throw out the dishes and wash the trash!”). Of course, 99% of your changes will turn out to be meaningless nonsense, but even nonsense can evoke positive emotions. Any boring news from the Vremya program will play if the druzipent Vedmedev participates in it.

2 New word in...

Hundreds of phraseological units that you constantly use have become so worn out from use that neither you nor your interlocutors notice them. Blow off the dust by replacing one of the worn parts with a new one. Instead of “freaking out,” say “ freak out about cholesterol", instead of the "carrot and stick method" - " whip and pizza method", instead of "glue the fins together" - " glue skis (boots from Skorokhod)" Please note: the more appropriate the replacement, the more fun it is. If you replace the name of the flower with “baobab” in the expression “God’s dandelion,” it will sound especially funny if the size of the old woman is close to the dimensions of the tree in question.

3 How does it sound?

The direct meaning of words and expressions is a rich field for jokes. ( “How are you after yesterday?” - “Like a cucumber! Green, and some suspicious little bumps appeared on the chest.”) The essence of this method is not to pay attention to the context and circumstances, but to focus on one, albeit not very significant, detail ( “Hold the door” - “Do you think if you let go, she’ll run away somewhere?”). Listen to everyday speech - you will be amazed how many reasons for such stupid jokes are hidden in almost every phrase ( “You're two hours late again! How does is called?" - “Hm... I give up. Well, what is it called? This is the first time I’ve heard this riddle!”).

4 Yes, more, more!

If you read us carefully, you probably noticed that we have already used the technique of comic exaggeration forty billion times in our magazine. As comedian Bill Cosby once noted, in mathematics 1 + 1 = 2, in humor 1 + 1 = 11 ( “How long have you been waiting for us?” - "From september. 1989"). You already often lie, take another step and start lying in a square: “I was so scared by this rustling sound that even my neighbors turned gray!” By the way, the formula “that even the neighbors have something there” is quite productive. Remember it and use it at every opportunity ( “I got so drunk that day that even my neighbors got up with a headache the next morning.”. “He weighs so much that even his neighbors had to go on a diet.”).

5 Original stamp

Another algorithm for constructing a joke is a cliché turned upside down: a proverb, a saying, quotes from a song or movie, etc. This is not the easiest of the methods (you have to stretch your imagination), but also not the most difficult (you have a stove, from which one should dance). At the beginning of the joke, you take a well-known cliché for a run, then, pushing off from it, you jump and land completely different from where you were expected.
“I’m ready to give up my right hand just to learn how to play the guitar!”
“I’m ready to give up my right arm just to become disabled!”
“I’m ready to give up my right hand to become left-handed!”
“I’m ready to give up my right hand. I still have three of them.”

Who did we play jokes from?

Back in 1932, psychologist F. Goodenough found out that a sense of humor is an innate skill, and not learned from adults, like speech or the habit of smoking after sex. In his experiments, deaf-blind babies laughed when tickled just like healthy ones. But since scientists at that time did not have today’s money or a false sense of the significance of their work, Goodenough’s ideas did not receive proper development.

Serious theories about the origin of humor appeared only at the end of the 20th century. Moreover, they were put forward by ethologists - researchers of animal behavior. For example, J. Panksepp in 1998 described the sense of humor in monkeys, canines, bears and even, surprisingly, rats. Of course, humor in this case must be understood in a broad sense: it is unlikely that a monkey will be able to appreciate the comedy of a situation when a person wearing different socks comes to her bank for an interview. However, all these animals are capable of two types of jokes. First, peek-a-boo is when one animal scares another by pretending to eat it, and then “laughs” at the victim’s fear. Secondly, public humiliation - when one male pushes another from a branch or crushes another, and then - okay, gray, are you offended? Moreover, if the monkeys are equal in status, the victim has the right to a “joke” in response, and the offender should not be offended. That is, he must give in the next time they knock him down.

As another ethologist, J. Gamble, found out, such a meager supply of witticisms is explained only by the lack of speech. As soon as gorillas or chimpanzees were taught sign language, they immediately began to joke much more subtly (by ape standards). For example, they deceived other monkeys that there was food hidden under a stone, and then watched with satisfied hoots as they worked their hairless asses lifting the boulder. In addition, big-eyed animal psychologists Van Hoof and Proeschoft discovered two types of reactions to jokes in monkeys and rats.

█ Grin (lips rolled up, teeth exposed and tightly clenched) - something like a smile, which is given by the objects of the prank. Interestingly, grinning in a broader sense is a signal of submission. Therefore, the equivalent of a grin in the human world should be recognized not only as the phrase “Ha-ha, of course!”, but also “You are such a wit, Pal Palych!”

█ A playful face (the mouth is open, the lips are extended, breathing becomes rapid) - a prototype of laughter. Animals use it to differentiate between play and reality. In childhood, when the cubs are learning, they often get into fights, fussing and chasing. If an adult runs after you and laughs, it's a game. If you are concentrated, apparently there is a predator on the horizon and you have to really run. Panksepp, by the way, found that animals “without humor”, raised by serious individuals (who cannot show a game face due to injuries or a muzzle), are less adapted to life, solve problems worse and cope with stress.

When the shovels sing

Why don’t they laugh at your witticisms, but only sniffle gloomily, thoroughly kicking you?

You weren't the first

Believe me, if a person’s name is Slava and he is over ten years old, he has already heard the joke about “Glory to the CPSU” two thousand times. Not a single Sveta will smile if you joke something like “sleep in the Light.” Anatoly Wasserman’s reaction to your pun about “Wasserman’s reaction” is also not difficult to guess. Did you come up with a joke? Wonderful! But before you post it, think for a second about how new it will be for the listener.

You know more than others

Tell your grandmother this incident from our fictional life: “I was recently in a Chinese restaurant. I ask the waiter: “Do you have Wi-Fi?” He left, then comes and says: “Wai Fai is a day off today, but there is his brother Wai Wen.”. If your grandmother laughs, she just loves you very much. Remember: if even one of the key elements of a joke is unknown to the listener, the joke will fall apart like a house of cards built of sand.

You overdid it

Many weak jokes were received with a bang and, in the good sense of the word, laughed at only because they sounded unexpected. Humor should appear spontaneous. Never prepare your audience that a bird is about to fly out ( “Wow, what a joke I came up with! Get pumped! Listen..."). You shouldn’t ask for forgiveness or make excuses in advance either ( “The anecdote, of course, is quite stupid, but I liked it. It touches on the topic of kinky sex with animals, so I apologize in advance to the ladies and animals present here. So...").

If a joke fails, the worst thing you can do is frantically remember the next joke ( “This time it’s definitely funny!”). It could turn out even worse. But the most tragic ending will be if you start accusing your interlocutors of lacking a sense of humor and seasoning the accusation with a detailed analysis of the joke. This behavior makes unfunny clowns become dead clowns.

4 theories of humor

From serious scientists who have observed humans and other animals.

Humor is a tool for creating alternative realities. Our jokes are the same playful romp of animals, only even more simplified. Imitation of imitation life. We check other people’s reactions to a conflict situation without physically getting involved in it: “Well, where do you think I was until three in the morning? I went to a brothel with our nurse and her stewardess friend!”

Humor is essential for improving emotional control. A joke is a reversal of the body’s response to stress: “They brought you pizza here. But we ate it! Ha ha! A developed psyche requires a quick transition, for example, from anger to happiness, because getting stuck in one emotion makes you vulnerable. For lower animals (and also for some guards, we would add) transitions to a new state are difficult.

For the benefit of evolution, two adults must be genetically dissimilar: this is the only way they can produce a good assortment of offspring. However, the difference in genes (and therefore in the color of eyes, skin, nipples and sidelocks) can be frightening: the second organism is perceived as alien. This means that there must be a mechanism for consolidating sympathy that is different from external attractiveness. An “emotional loop” becomes such a mechanism: the first one jokes, the second one is happy, the first one is happy that the second one is happy, etc. Jokes about a non-offensive woman are good cement for relationships ( “Darling, do snakes sleep with their eyes open?” - “I don’t know, I get up later than you”).

These two believe that humor is not a mechanism of attachment, but of choosing a partner. Both admit that the choice in sex is always up to the woman, so the man is obliged to joke. At the same time, Mulcahy believes that humor is a product of demonstrative aggression; it is intended to humiliate male competitors in front of females: “San, it wasn’t you who printed about self-medication for gonorrhea - is there anything left on the printer?” Well, good-natured Miller writes that a joke should not be offensive, humor is simply a sign of good intellectual form, and therefore high-quality genes. It seems that his theory, which for once takes into account the character of people, and not gorillas, is the most correct.

Wit for the lazy

How to be known as a funny guy without making up a joke.

Quote

As Mikhail Zhvanetsky once noted, “One well-placed quote is worth ten out-of-place anecdotes.” Memorize a dozen quotes, for example from “The Twelve Chairs,” and wait for the right moment. Did your colleague show up to work wearing something new? Go up to him and announce publicly: “It was impossible to start a polygamist’s career without a marvelous dapple-gray suit.”. Is anyone getting scolded by their bosses? Note in a low voice: “From the outside it might seem that a respectful son is talking to his father, only the father shakes his head too animatedly”.

Ideally, the quote used should not be shabby from frequent use (“To whom the mare is a bride”), otherwise it will lose some of its power. In this case, it is desirable that the source be at least approximately guessed. A good quotation brings with it the spirit of the work, and all the former positive emotions associated with the quoted work come to life in the souls of the listeners. By the way, this is why the quote from Zhvanetsky with which we started did not make much of an impression on you. Well, also because we invented it ourselves.

Tell jokes

A Frenchman, a German and Mikhail Zhvanetsky somehow ended up on a desert island. And they began to compete to see who could tell the best joke. It was Zhvanetsky’s turn, and he said: “One appropriately told anecdote is worth ten inappropriately used quotes.” Yes, whatever one may say, there is no more reliable way to gain a reputation as a joker and comedian than telling jokes. It’s okay that you didn’t invent them. It is impossible to treat someone who makes you laugh without sympathy. Anger can only be caused if it turns out that you forgot the ending of the joke.

Speak with accents

Any boring phrase said with an Estonian accent will make others smile, unless, of course, neither the speaker nor those around are Estonians ( “Re-read me, pa-azhalusta, so-ol, but be-faster”). Other “cheerful” accents are no worse: Georgian ( “Sleesh, sol, paredai, huh?”), Jewish ( “I have to ask you for salt. Why are you bothering me? Well, this is downright funny, not salt!”), Eskimo ( “My salt is to ask, thank you to say!” Perhaps, however, this example was Chinese).

What do women want?

And the last scientific fact, with which we could not help but spoil the parade of jokes and witticisms, which in fact (although it is not obvious) is our article. More precisely, not exactly a fact, but the result of a series of experiments carried out by anthropologists E. Bresler and J. Greengross. Independently of each other, these two carried out experiments on women (all sexy) and men of different ages, statuses and external characteristics.

Since the scientists were unable to insist on the main requirement of the experiment - that all women should also be naked - it was carried out like this. Men who filled out regular profiles, like those on dating sites, were assigned status based on income level, education and appearance. Women were not shown this status assessment, but they could read the questionnaires freely. In addition, each man had an autobiography written by professional comedians. The types of humor varied: toilet, chauvinistic, self-flagellation, offensive to other men, etc. - eight types in total. Going through the line of women, the man read out his “autobiography” and received a final assessment of sexual attractiveness. Then the same thing was repeated in reverse. Apart from the banal conclusions like “a sense of humor is very important for dating,” Bresler and Greengross found the following.

Men don't like it when a woman makes jokes

Perhaps perceiving them as competitors ( “Maybe she’ll have sex with herself, and... have any cutlets?”), participants in the experiment lowered the scores of the funniest storytellers. And if anyone was called very attractive, it was the laughers who laughed most actively during the first stage. So women don't have to joke at all. But, fortunately, they don’t know how, ha ha!

It almost doesn't matter how a man jokes

The highest marks, regardless of status, were given to the lucky ones who came across a “simply funny” autobiography. Neutral humor, without a clearly defined object of jokes, without vulgarity and fixation on any topic, increased the sex appeal of a man in the eyes of a woman. All other types of humor worked noticeably worse. But, surprisingly, there was no difference between them: almost the same number of women liked toilet humor as high-brow humor. Although there was one exception that deserves its own paragraph.

Self-flagellation only works if you're cool

The old advice, “If you can't laugh at anything else, laugh at yourself,” can be deadly for low-status men. If the woman in Greengross's experiments knew that she was a loser, self-flagellation humor ( “If I have money, I like to go to a fancy restaurant and order a big McNugget.”) only reduced the man’s attractiveness in her eyes. However, if she knew in advance - from the questionnaire - about the weighty and sonorous advantages of her counterpart, loser jokes worked at the neutral level. That is, in the best possible way.

They say that a sense of humor is related to the level of intelligence - the smarter a person is, the funnier his jokes are.

This statement is ambiguous, but has a truthful basis. The broader a person’s horizons and interests, the more situations he is able to play out using humor.

Healthy humor, as well as sarcasm and other types of entertaining eloquence, should be appropriate. It is the relevance and timeliness of the joke that ensure its success. And for a joke to be relevant, it is important to say it not only in the right situation, but also in the right society. Different cultural characteristics, worldviews and ethical standards dictate different conditions for humor.

And how does this relate to intelligence?

Intelligence is not just a number, the result of an IQ test, but a body of knowledge. The ability to correctly analyze the situation and cultural characteristics of society in order to adequately assess the situation will allow you to react wittily, make funny jokes and not hurt anyone’s feelings. But you also need to remember the joke in order to apply it. Thus, thinking and memory are directly related to a sense of humor.

You can develop a sense of humor by expanding your horizons.

Cultural education, studying the characteristics of various social groups - through literature and art - will allow you to navigate the situation in order to joke effectively and be understood. To master this art, flexibility of mind and attention to detail are important.

Thus, to joke funny and appropriate, you must:

Expand your horizons,
- develop memory, attention and thinking,
- keep your brain in good shape.

For all this, regular training is required. The Vikium service offers gaming simulators based on scientific research that comprehensively develop mental acuity and stimulate thinking.

Using the example of famous and successful stand-up comedians, we can trace this relationship - they all have a broad outlook, are aware of current news, competently analyze the situation and very accurately choose the moment for a joke. It is useful to watch them, for example, watch regular episodes The Ellen DeGeneres Show or performances Louis C.K. or Jimmy Carr on YouTube. In addition, everyday, universal humor is clearly shown in TV series, for example, in the legendary "Friends"(Friends 1994-2004).

There are different types of intelligence. Perelman is not joking at all. The creators of new weapons in Russia too. Their sense of humor could only be appreciated by nuclear physicists, who began to explain to the world that it is not realistic for a rocket to fly around the globe with these parameters and apparently not crash along the way. In every profession, at the professional level, there must be instinct. Comedians have it. They just feel why the hall will explode and why not. At the same time, this does not apply to some individual, who, for example, in principle, cannot be made to laugh in certain situations, this concerns the general mass of their jokes, which are often stupid and vulgar, but people are already forming a reflex. And Atkinson can just pick his nose - they’re already laughing. The same effect with Zadornov, Zhvanetsky and Galkin. They may already be talking nonsense, but it will seem beautiful, because the image of the clown has been formed. It’s the same in individual situations, if you know a person well, then you know his weak points, you understand how he feels. Therefore, they say that people are matched not only by smell, but also by what they laugh at, if they can relax together, then they are a couple, and if they strain each other, then this is a business partnership.