Arthur Koestler, in his '60's "The Act of Creation," gave what I think is today still the best paradigm explanation for humor. Koestler pointed out that functionally there are essentially two information systems in the brain. One consists of the discrete messages blocked or passed on via nerve fibers. The other consists of the generalized focusing based on the emotions - on chemicals that hit millions of neurons, preparing a wide focus - fight, flight, anticipation, etc., that we identify as emotional states.
While the neuronal transmission system can turn on a dime, so to speak, the emotional system cannot re-uptake the chemicals just released nearly as quickly, so it does the next best thing during very rapid context shifts by releasing the opposite set in enough volume to damp out the initial release.
Koestler identifies the pun as the simplest, most basic form of humor. Every pun involves a word simultaneously having two incompatible, or tangential meanings, as in, "I'm 'pun'ishing my audience with this pun.
The neuronal system rapidly switches focus back and forth between the two meanings, which causes the emotional system to keep overriding itself, such that even a very low charge difference between the two meanings rapidly accellerates up an exponential information curve, building up a huge charge of neurochemicals relative to the context.
When the limit is reached and there are no more chemicals left or every receptor is jammed, then the person goes into a system reset, which is what laughing is all about. Note that if the situation were dangerous or seriously mean, then that context would normally override the humor response.
Koestler also showed how that applied to other types of humor, including tickling. In a successful tickle, the tickler fakes aggression, and the ticklee is just enough convinced of the aggression to have a conflicted response - knowing that the ticklee is a friend and seeing the apparent aggressiveness simultaneously.
Note that it is virtually impossible to be tickled by someone who is a serious enemy, unless you're in total denial of that reality. It can also be difficult to be tickled by someone you are deeply in love with, as no aggression is believable.
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timeasmymeasure
Humor and neuroprogramming
Date: 2006-09-22 03:07 am (UTC)While the neuronal transmission system can turn on a dime, so to speak, the emotional system cannot re-uptake the chemicals just released nearly as quickly, so it does the next best thing during very rapid context shifts by releasing the opposite set in enough volume to damp out the initial release.
Koestler identifies the pun as the simplest, most basic form of humor. Every pun involves a word simultaneously having two incompatible, or tangential meanings, as in, "I'm 'pun'ishing my audience with this pun.
The neuronal system rapidly switches focus back and forth between the two meanings, which causes the emotional system to keep overriding itself, such that even a very low charge difference between the two meanings rapidly accellerates up an exponential information curve, building up a huge charge of neurochemicals relative to the context.
When the limit is reached and there are no more chemicals left or every receptor is jammed, then the person goes into a system reset, which is what laughing is all about. Note that if the situation were dangerous or seriously mean, then that context would normally override the humor response.
Koestler also showed how that applied to other types of humor, including tickling. In a successful tickle, the tickler fakes aggression, and the ticklee is just enough convinced of the aggression to have a conflicted response - knowing that the ticklee is a friend and seeing the apparent aggressiveness simultaneously.
Note that it is virtually impossible to be tickled by someone who is a serious enemy, unless you're in total denial of that reality. It can also be difficult to be tickled by someone you are deeply in love with, as no aggression is believable.