Why Do People Laugh? — Evolutionary and Psychological Principles
Laughter was a social signal and survival tool
Laughter isn't unique to humans. Chimpanzees and rats laugh too — meaning laughter is an evolutionary behavior older than language.
3 Theories of Laughter
1. Incongruity Theory: Laughter occurs when expectation and reality diverge. The foundation for most comedy patterns.
2. Superiority Theory: Laughing at others' mistakes from a sense of relative superiority (Thomas Hobbes). Slapstick comedy, laughing at people falling.
3. Relief Theory: Freud's view — suppressed psychological energy is released as laughter. Explains why taboo topics (sex, death, violence) are funny, and why "shouldn't laugh" situations make things funnier.
Key Points
Incongruity: expectation-reality gap → foundation of most comedy
Superiority: others' mistakes → laughter from relative superiority
Relief: suppressed energy release → why taboo topics are funny
Laughter is older than language — chimps and rats laugh too