What do puns, comedy shows, rom-coms, and adult cartoons have in common? They are funny and bring people together. A shared laugh from a joke can tell much about someone, whether they’re laid-back, stuck up, or interested. It draws people in and creates real interaction. Everyone loves a good joke, and it rarely hurts to include some one-liners.
In all, humor is essential and unites people, making connections through shared laughter and joy.
In my personal experience, I see humor through my academics. My calculus class is filled with numbers, variables, and formulas and can become dull and disengaging at some point. During our videos, my teacher likes to include jokes about other students or puns relating to calculus. In a recent video, she put speech bubbles stemming from pictures of my classmates saying, “Do we really have to do this?” or “Yay, another calc video,” with an implied sarcastic tone. Doing this at the start of her videos draws me into what she is saying and the content of the video. Otherwise, I’m disconnected and distracted from what I’m learning.
Additionally, research supports the idea that humor strengthens relationships through laughter. According to “How Laughter Brings Us Together” by Jill Suttie of Greater Good Magazine, shared laughter strengthens relationships by creating a sense of similarity and connection, making people like and feel closer to one another. The article analyzes it chemically deeper, stating that laughter produces endorphins, which lead to connection. Nonetheless, socially, it breaks down awkwardness and unfamiliarity that initially hold back connections.
Humor has a unique way of cutting through the noise and bringing people together. A shared laugh can lighten the load and remind us of our shared humanity in a world that often feels heavy.
Being a senior at South, I see that our student body is filled with laughter and joy. It doesn’t matter that a new face is next to you on the first day of school; a nice laugh can make it feel like you’ve known the person for years. It’s those moments of laughter and feelings of joy that make life feel a bit brighter and relationships a lot stronger.
