Stewart Stremler wrote:
begin quoting Andrew Lentvorski as of Sun, Jan 14, 2007 at 04:28:48PM -0800:
Gregory K. Ruiz-Ade wrote:
[snip]
No, he's completely serious, being the greatly insensitive clod that he
is. We should all gang up together and roll him at the next meeting.
...
Sheesh, people, what's with the sudden uptightness?
First, you are correct. Lan has a dry wit. One of the hazards of a dry
wit is the ability to be misunderstood. Doubly so in email. You may
Being misunderstood is the basis of a dry wit.... ideally up to the
point of the listener preparing to respond rashly, whereupon
enlightenment dawns.
Wit (or humor) of any kind, particularly dry and toasty, presents a
puzzle to its audience, who is rewarded when they solve the puzzle and
realize they've been had. That is the point at which one either laughs
or groans. Either laughter or groans releases endorphins that make us
feel better, which is why we (eventually) appreciate the humor or wit.
Dry wit, being harder to 'solve', generates a greater reward.
It helps to put a longer-than-normal pause after an excessively dry
statement, partially to signal that the statement isn't as it seems,
and partly to enjoy the sound of jaws dropping, and then foreheads
being slapped.
Signals (a pause or smileys ... or whatever) help signal that a puzzle
has been presented. They aren't necessary to the humor but are sometimes
appreciated (when not overused) because they ease the social pain
involved when you figure out how you've been had.
James
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James E. Henderson
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