LEARNING ABOUT RUSSIAN HUMOR (sketch) They don’t have the tradition of slapstick

LEARNING ABOUT RUSSIAN HUMOR

(sketch)

They don’t have the tradition of slapstick, and so pain isn’t funny – it’s a form of hyperbole. And they don’t generally engage in hyperbole either. (hyperbole is a universal component of american humor.) They don’t think being stupid is funny.And rather than finding humor in the violation of manners that is so common in western humor, people find humor in the violation of the principle of usefulness: futility.

But, they do think inebriated behavior is funny. And, the theme of ‘cognitive impairment’ is what ties together the most intellectual joke, and the most base: cognitive impairment of ignorance, bias, experience, ego, rule following, or whatever other source can be imagined.

To some degree this mirrors old english teasing, riddle, trickery, and pranking (my tradition). Although trickery in english humor is a criticism for not paying attention, not a criticism of inescapable and ever-present human stupidity.

I actually can’t watch american humor because of its slapstick. I don’t find it funny. Worse, it’s stupid and annoying. But most russian humor contains bitter insight into the human condition. And I pretty much always find it funny. Even if it always seems a bit sad or fatalistic.