The Philosophy of Comedy: comedic techniques

I don't sell these a joke under that mean that's our problem with something every young guys they think it's all attitude and all no yeah no I got it working on it yeah jokes the typical structure of a joke consists of a setup and punchline so does the set up do the set up builds up the audience's expectations however this is done the most common superstition in the world today is the belief in horoscopes it has to engage the audience's emotions or attitudes usually this expectation leads to some sort of tension anxiety or nervous energy and this is followed by a relief through the punchline and there's a name for people that believe in horoscopes they're called single women another way of thinking about this is in terms of a puzzle there's some puzzle that needs to be solving if you're a relief from solving it sometimes the relief is derived from realizing that the puzzle is absurd and not meant to be solved at all if I had a daughter and she was in the next room going mommy there's a monster under my bed I'd be like yeah of course there that's where they live Tomic can use an overblown exaggeration almost a Socratic irony to build up tension in the audience by eliciting some emotion or attitude this can be spiked disgusts approach anger and under exaggeration can have the same playful effect but the elicit emotion is often more neutral or positive something like pity adoration or confusion I hate how Oprah was interviewing them and acting like she was dumbfounded that this guy would do this like she's been in show business for 35 years and she can't like wrap her head around some guy doing whatever it takes to get to the next level here bill burr is eliciting an emotional response from the audience by criticizing Oprah the reaction from the audience is go because Oprah isn't the usual target for criticism there's some confusion or shock as the puzzle didn't she for the first five years have liked midgets who wanted to bang the mailman's boyfriend she didn't want to do it she didn't want to do it but she didn't have the power to say no so she wrote it out and then when she could make a quick decision she said Ashok the built-up tension engages the audience on an emotional level it's a very subtle manipulation when the exaggeration becomes obvious the tension starts to be relieved the audience knows he's not seriously criticizing Oprah it's all tongue-in-cheek the audience knows down there in on the game to solve a puzzle but she stood on the head of those little people how could you know exactly what he's doing the use of specific concrete examples reinforces the connection between the comedian and the audience the particular feeling or experience that resonates between the comedian and the audience is integral for there to be attention a genuine tension that the comedian wants to have on the audience in the following release this underlying point of building a connection between the community and the audience can be put another way be relatable still it must be original or else it can't build a genuine tension the familiar is boring it doesn't elicit the appropriate response on the howdy every box of Swanson says hungry man on the box I imagine they had a marketing meeting they went all right we're not gonna do anything about the quality we're agreed upon that so which segment of the public should we target that could potentially even choke this pig food down what about hungry men that are broke alone and starving taste is the least of their problem your Seinfeld employs a common ground between him and the audience the TV dinner and impacted from many different angles but it's an honest product it's TV dinner they're telling you TV dinner stare at the screen and chew do not look down icefrog grind it out hear the relief of observational humor is finding novel insights in something so ordinary like TV dinners I do think Swanson has helped people it helps people reach their personal life goals in a way I've had I had a lot of millions of them when I when I was starting now and you you peel back that that plastic cover you plow through those four compartments a hell by the time you get to that peach cobbler you go I gotta make something out of my life the use of body gestures and facial expressions adds a dimension of realism for the audience makes it seem believable and this is crucial for building up tension if it's not believable if the audience is aware that they're being manipulative there can't be a genuine tension and relief the comedian must be in control in this respect tone and volume are also important it captures the audience and makes the scene more authentic because it's 6:00 a.m. I'm just I'm so deep in this in the deep African asleep like it's just a ancient mysterious submerged in a river of warm chocolate just note Louie's mannerisms gestures and expressions not only are they important for communication they also paint a picture for the eyes and sleeve was like a goddess just sucking me off just she's got a gold helmet in 40 tongue again tone and volume elicit an emotional response and it goes to further reinforce the Comics persona and she's speaking in a dead language even today and she's feeding therapy heroin into my penis while she's sucking let this be my life please let this be real with you daddy no the use of rhythm or pace is another important feature comedians use a slower pace to build up a certain tension and switch to faster pace to capture the audience's attention or provide further relief I want to see what I'm so smart that I'm uncomfortable in this world and I'm scared to live I'm not scared to live but it's scary out here goddamn I know how flimsy this is I can see foolish and I'm free the truth an animal inside each and every one of you it's not good note here Dave's use of causes for emphasis and tension is real listen I was looking to pay for the other day I'm not making this up there's a serial rapist in Houston it's not funny about serial rape but the pacing the rhythm the pauses they're all important techniques for public speakers the animal inside each and every one of you it's not good is real listen I look in the paper the other day I'm not making this up there's a serial rapist in Houston it's nothing funny about serial rape but what is noteworthy about this particular rapist is that all of his victims have been men enjoy your evening I just like tougher okay and duxford grease past majors Terraplane it's a duck blur I solve a mystery or rewrite history [Music]

Channel: PhilosoFun

Views: 608,277

Keywords: chris rock, jimmy carr, jen kirkman, seinfeld, dave chappelle, bill burr, louis ck, friends, video essay, philosophy, comedy, humor, funny, joke, stand up

Id: bFtEHZUqoOY

Length: 8min 0sec (480 seconds)

Published: Fri Jul 14 2017