Humour

• Engels
• Secundair onderwijs

Intro

What humour do you like? Write your answer on this site: Padlet

How does he explain his humour is based on his physical handicap?

1. There is nothing else he can do.
2. His handicap makes him who he is.
3. Your weaknesses are your strenghts.
4. Always look on the bright side of life.

What expression does he use to refer to the fact his audience feels his physical handicap is a taboo subject?

1. 'Let's just beat about the bush.'
2. 'It's like the elephant in the room.'
3. 'Let's not take this the wrong way.'
4. 'Let's just gloss over it.'

Recognized each idiom?

Here is some extra information on the idioms used in the previous exercise.

Beat about the bush: discuss something in an indirect way, without saying what you really want to say.

The elephant in the room: an obvious problem or difficult situation that people don't want to talk about.

Take something the wrong way: be upset by a comment which is not intended to be unkind.

Gloss over something: ignore something or avoid saying something, or treat it as unimportant.

How does he want to make something of his life?

Explain why his humour is called 'self-deprecating'?

Answer the question on the Padlet and react to at least one comment of one of your peers!

Watch the video below. Then, have a look at the questions on the next slides. Rewatch the video and find the correct answers.

What is laughter? A ____ response that involves at least 15 facial muscles, the ____ system, the brains limbic system and even our tear ___.

What is emotional incontinence?

In what sense is laughter a social phenomenon?

Name

What makes us laugh?

Example

Mostly used

Incongruity theory

Element of surprise

Unexpected punchline/ friend tripping over a throw rug

By children

Relief theory

Relief, mental 'mini break'

Wise-crack in a suspensful film scene

In stressful moments

Superiority theory

Misfortune of others/ us vs. them

Teenagers make fun of their parents

By teenagers

In the next

In the next slides you will be introduced to some types of humour. Go over each one of them. Next, watch the videos and determine which types you recognise.

Parody: making fun of an original work through satiric or ironic imitation

Double entendre: an ambiguous word of phrase that allows for a double interpretation

Surreal/absurdist: the logical but unconventional pairing of actions or thoughts; deliberate violations of causal reasoning

Irony: sarcastic statements that generally mean the opposite of what's being expressed

Pastiche: respectfully imitating an original work

Overstatement: exaggeration

Visual humour: sight gag without words involving a physical impossibility or an unexpected occurrence

Cringe comedy: embarrassment from inappropriate actions or words

Satire: ridiculing the vices of especially those in political or social positions

Deadpan/dry humour: displaying a lack of emotion to contrast with the ridiculousness of the subject matter.

Schadenfreude: pleasure derived from the misfortune of others

Now it's up to you!

Have a look at the following videos and indicate which type of humour fits in. Warning! When more than one type of humour fits, you will see this indicated by a number next to the video.

1

1. Pastiche
2. Parody
3. Surreal/ absurdist
4. Visual humour

1

1. Surreal/ absurdist
2. Parody
3. Cringe
4. Visual humour

2

1. Parody
2. Irony
3. Deadpan/ dry humour
4. Satire

2

1. Pastiche
2. Double entendre
3. Overstatement
4. Parody

1

1. Satire
2. Parody
3. Cringe comedy
4. Schadenfreude

1

1. Irony
2. Pastiche
3. Schadenfreude
4. Overstatement

2

1. Cringe comedy
2. Double entendre
3. Satire
4. Irony

3

1. Irony
2. Pastiche
3. Parody
4. Cringe

1

1. Visual humour
2. Deadpan
3. Parody
4. Satire

3

1. Pastiche
2. Parody
3. Schadenfreude
4. Overstatement

Time for a test!

Solve the crossword and see how much you remember of this class.

Now it's your turn!

• Make three jokes that correspond with three different types of humour using Chat GPT. 
• Type your prompt in English and check if Chat GPT's answer is correct. Argue why (not).
• Share your findings in the Padlet!

Still got some time left?

Read the article and answer the questions.

Name the four types of humour mentioned in the article.

Benefits mental health

Benefits physical health

better self-esteem

more social

more control over anxiety

greater self-competency

improves cardiovascular health 

lowers blood pressure and muscle tension