I will first talk about humor - by providing the mathematical and logical formulation of a joke. Years ago I picked up a book, “Mathematics and Humor“, by John Allen Paulos, which goes about modeling a joke in mathematical terms. For a geek like me, the book, which was older than me, provided a gripping read, traversing through Catastrophe Theory, incongruity and other impenetrable terms.
Its primary assertion is that jokes start off with contextual ambiguity, and slowly builds to a point where it reaches a cusp, and the punchline precipitates the catastrophic event of the sudden clarity of the exact interpretation, releasing the tension caused by fear, anxiety, embarrassment and other emotions.
The mathematical model that represents this incongruity depicts (like the discontinuous plane on the left) 2 paths that seem to lead to the same place when measured in 2 dimensions (x,y), and actually separated by a chasm that is traverse by the catastrophic event (punchline).
Further extending the mathematical model, degrees of hilarity can be actually traced to the depth of this chasm – the better you keep the contexts apart, the contextual leap would be more sudden and impactful, making it funnier (perhaps).
But the important thing that stuck with me throughout these years is that no matter the what the joke is, it constitutes of multiple contexts. This is important.
Then let me talk about satire, my primary source of enjoyment. Satire need not be funny, it just needs to highlight the absurdity of reality through witty and incisive critique. But satirical comedy could be a explosive mix. Controversial at times, but it surreptitiously inserts the second context into the cognitive processes of the audience – a sneaky way to illuminate the actual issue. In the midst of digesting a joke, it forces the listener to, either consciously or subconsciously to tease out the source of humor – making the jump from the fabricated context to the real and possibly more serious context.
But enough talk about the underlying mechanisms! A large part of my blog would be devoted to relaying the messages of my favourite satirists, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert (F Yeah!). Each brilliant in their own way. I shall talk more about them in the future. With the coming US elections, and a brand new season of television coming up.. look forward to lots of crap.
