It has been said that laughter is the best medicine and a lot of healing and betterment can come from the ability to be funny and to see the humor in almost any situation. Unfortunately, people with autism tend to struggle with language, reading comprehension and the sometimes multiple meanings of words that may prohibit them from fully understanding a joke or situation and even living a happier life. In their defense though, English is also one of the most difficult languages in the world to learn. Just ask anyone that has learned English as a second language (ESL).
People with autism tend to be very literal (they’d be looking for cats and dogs if someone said “it’s raining cats and dogs”) and often do not pick up on social cues on their own or through experience with peers and have to actually be taught about terms used in humor. Speaking from experience, knowing and understanding the following terms and how they are used in everyday conversation can work wonders on improving your sense of humor and bring about more joy and laughter in your life:
-Idioms (plays on words such as “the cat is out of the bag” meaning “the secret’s out”)
-Euphemisms (substituting one word or term for another such as saying “passed away” instead of “died”)
-Innuendos (suggestive remarks or hints that one may respond with “that’s what she said” to make it sound sexual)
-Cliches (a phrase used so often it becomes used by all such as “scared to death” when describing “very scared”)
-Stereotypes (ideas that are usually inaccurate used to describe a certain person or group of people such as “all actors and actresses are rich”)
-Irony (language indicating the opposite effect of its literal meaning for purposes of humor such as a police officer getting busted for breaking the law when he/she is supposed to be enforcing the law)
-Sarcasm (using irony to mock or insult someone such as “I would not trade places with you for all the gold in Fort Knox”)
-Rhetorical question (a question asked in order to make a point rather than receive a response such as “Is the Pope Catholic?”)
-Homophones (words that sound the same but have different meanings and/or spelling such as ‘seem’ (appearing a certain way) and ‘seam’ (a line joining two pieces of fabric))
-Homonyms (words that are spelled the same but have different meanings such as ‘bear’ (the furry animal) and ‘bear’ (carry or support))
-Punchline (the final phrase in a joke or story that connects all the facts and makes it funny)
Comedians know exactly how and when to deliver the punchline to make the audience roll in the aisles with laughter. My favorite comedian, Jeff Foxworthy, known for his “You Might Be a Redneck If…” jokes, is often asked by people where he comes up with material for his jokes. To the surprise of many, he responds that his jokes are often not made up, but rather are “true stuff.” One example is his family’s mailbox that read ‘male’ on it for the longest time and nobody “got it.” Which of the terms I described above addresses ‘male’ vs. ‘mail’? Once you understand WHY a joke is funny based on the above vocabulary words will you start finding yourself chuckling when you hear something funny. As a result, you will be on your way to making your own jokes, developing a sense of humor and bringing more and more laughter into your life. You may even look back on a past situation and laugh! (Remember Mr. Dawes, Sr. in “Mary Poppins”? ‘A wooden leg named Smith…’)
Jeff Foxworthy is my comic idol and I could recite most of his ‘redneck’ jokes by heart having heard them so many times. Having an idol or someone to look up to in your life can be a great source of motivation and inspiration…but we will save that topic for next week. Until then!
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