Play Theory of Laughter

Very Short Summary

The idea behind the Play Theory of Laughter lays in biology. Monkeys laugh, rats laugh, humans laugh. Laughter is something we share with a lot of species. Thus it stands to reason that there is an evolutionary advantage in doing it.

And where there is an advantage, there is a reason.

Playing is a safe way for a child to explore and learn. For example the game Tag, which furthers quick reaction and the ability to evade, could be seen as a form of preparation and training in order to be able to better flee from a predator.

The problem though is: How can someone from the outside tell if a child is playing tag or actually trying to flee? What separates play from something more serious?

Laughter.

Laughter says: “This is ok. I am ok.”

It is a play signal.

Laughter is the result of needing a signal that communicates that this isn’t real fighting.

Which leads us to the False Alarm Signal part of the Play Theory:

Think back to the Stone Age and imagine yourself and your tribe sitting around a campfire. All of a sudden behind you in the dark appears a monster with more limbs than possible and horns coming out of its shoulders. The fight or flight instinct kicks in, you huddle together, gripping your spears, ready to fight. But as soon as the monster steps into the light of the campfire you realize it’s just your cousin coming back from the hunt, schlepping a gazelle over his shoulders which explains the horns and the extra limbs.

Now what happens? You start laughing. And as we all know a good big laugh makes your knees weak, your grip weaker, inhibits your ability to breath properly (aka laughter) and releases hormones into your bloodstream that counteract the adrenaline. Simply put: Laughter inhibits your ability to attack. Even better: It inhibits you to attack a friend AND also let’s your buddies know that the situation is under control and there is nothing to fear. It was a false alarm.

This is also why we describe laughter as contagious and why we more easily laugh when we are in groups than when we sit alone in front of a computer: It helps us prevent a tragedy by inhibiting our friends to harm someone innocent. So it follows that when we are alone we simply don’t need to laugh because there is no reason for us to “disarm” someone else.

Proponents

Brian Boyd (Laughter and Literature: A Play Theory of Humor)

The Case for the Play Theory of Laughter

People in a good and playful mood are easier to make laugh. Play signals are one explanation why it’s easier to make people laugh in a comedy club or in a theater than it is in a boardroom. A stage screams: “We are here to have fun. To make-believe.”

Contrast that with a boardroom with its water pitchers, Powerpoint presentations and pitches about yet another sitcom based on a comedians life. All that just screams: “Take my life… please!”

The Case against the Play Theory of Laughter

Is it necessary to feel playful or to communicate in some way that this playing in order to laugh? Yes. Because if the joke recipient takes your jokes seriously there won’t be any laughter.

Is it sufficient to feel playful or to communicate in some way that this is playing in order to laugh? No. Otherwise grinning at someone would be sufficient to elicit laughter, but all it does is making the other people on the train uncomfortable.

Rating: Two out of Five Stars

I think it’s fascinating and a wonderful explanation of why we laugh. But how does this help us write better comedy?

The Takeaway

To answer the question in the Rating: It doesn’t really. But it useful to think about the context your comedy is going to be perceived: Are there play signals? Can there be more? Are there any reasons for an audience to think that you aren’t joking? Are you yourself sending out stress signals by being nervous? How can you get into a playful state that let’s the audience know that you are playing?