University of California Television (UCTV)
(Visit: http://www.uctv.tv/) Why does humor exist at all? It consumes a lot of time and energy, and some humans are arguably addicted to humor. Daniel Dennett (Tufts Univ) explores what, in biological terms, sustains this costly habit. Series: “CARTA – Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny” [Science] [Show ID: 24981]
Source
CARTA: Is the Human Mind Unique? — Daniel Dennett: Humor
i wonder if it's almost a sense of relief. the world must have been a dangerous place for such physically vulnerable creatures who hadn't yet developed the abilities to protect themselves completely. so what's unexpected is that something could be out of the ordinary, yet not be harmful. maybe it's why slapstick is found humorous by so many. the person trips over his feet or gets hit by the heavy object and still doesn't die.
Trying to explain humor is like interupting an orgasm while having a sex…………
Reminds me of "nervous laughter" like when you just barely miss getting in a car accident and you "heart leaps into your throat" and all those other phrases we have for adrenaline rushes – I always laugh right after something like this, and it's always like "holy shit that was close" and it's not funny at all, I almost potentially died, but I got away and didn't die. That line of thought makes it sound like laughter is more of a side effect than a primary, just the result of too much adrenaline.
But how do you explain Germans?
Exactly, just like an repeated orgasm stops being exciting.
I will use the joking reply that Dan uses in his book: Germans laugh three times at each joke, first when you tell it, second when you explain it and finally when they finally"get" it. There are different types of laughter.
What is the joke at 6'10!?? I'm not from the states, maybe I'm missing something… are those US politicians? Thanks for any help! Love this lecture! Currently reading Dennet's Inside Jokes. Happy to have found this video tonight. 🙂