There is a large debate among many in the comedy community on whether or not people can learn to be funny. Many comedians discount classes, comedy coaches, and books as real resources for learning the art of comedy. Many comedians think you are either born funny or you’re not. So what’s the truth? Are you born funny or can you become funny? Well the truth lies somewhere in between.
Being funny and being able to have the humor to make people laugh is a talent, which only a few of us are blessed with. If I were some bearded scientist and people asked me to separate being funny and having a sense of humor, I’d say it is almost the same thing. It is impossible to draw a line between being funny and having a sense of humor. Since we are talking about having a sense of humor, where do you think we get it from?
The On-Going Debate
There has been a fierce sort of debate going on through the world of scientist which the world is confused to put a finger upon. You inherited your wavy brown hair from your beautiful mom but what about the mole on your cheek? Well, you got that from the mole that your father has on his big toe (which is covered somewhere in all those hair of his foot).
It is clear where we got all these things from but where did you get your humor from? Your ability to sing? Or the charm of your personality? Have you learned this from your parents? The environment you are in? Or is it determined by your genes? It is understood that the physical features are hereditary, right? But It is difficult to understand genetic compounding in terms of human behavior. Hence, the long-running debate over the “Nature vs Nurture” has not been resolved till date.
The Case For Nature
The role of both nature and nurture on the environment are useful statements. Some scientists believe that people act on genetic tendencies or “animal instincts”. This is called the natural theory of human behavior. Nature theory focuses on abstract features such as intelligence, personality, aggression and sexual orientation. You have it in your DNA. There has been a lot of research done as to if our personality and all the talents we have are the grades of nature.
In April 1998, George Hawcolt published an article titled “Were You Born That Way” in LIFE magazine which said: “new studies show it’s mostly in your genes.” The genes are supposed to be the way that we understand why we are who and how we are. But is there a funny gene?
Robert Levenson, a professor at the University of California Berkeley did a study which linked smiling and laughing behaviors to the 5-HTTLPR gene, which is a serotonin receptor that has variants linked depression. He and his colleagues identified two distinct versions, or alleles, of this gene: short and long. The gene isn’t a “laughing gene,” but rather a gene that dictates an emotional response to different stimuli. Levenson and his fellow researchers found that people with the short allele had a tendency to laugh and smile more than people who had the long allele.
However, they also found that people with the short allele were more likely to have a quick negative reaction which suggests that the gene plays a role in more than just a person’s sense of humor. This means that different kinds of humor may evoke different responses in different people. So while everyone can have a sense of humor not everyone will find the same things funny.
This means that funny people can create funny people. Just like we often see the children of sports athletes excel in the same sport it is possible that the genes of a funny person can be passed on to their children making funny children. Funny, not funny looking although that tends to be more common.
The Case For Nurture
There are many other scientists who believe that people think and act to make up their personalities, and it is because they have been taught this. This is the so-called theory of nurture on human behavior. All aspects of our behaviors only stem from the environmental factors of our development. Studies on infants and twins reveal the most important evidence of nurture theory which can’t be ignored.
American psychologist John Watson, known for his scandalous experiments with a young orphan named Albert, showed that the emergence of phobias can be explained by classical conditioning. If the person is taught to be scared of something, he will gain this phobia and follow it throughout his life.
Harvard psychologist B.F, this known scientist delivered some of his great work in this matter too. In the early experiments by Skinner, the result produced pigeons who were able to dance and play tennis. Imagine pigeons being able to do all these incredible things. It was definitely not in their genes. The man, now known as the father of behavioral science, eventually showed that human behavior is triggered and can be nurtured just like the pigeons.
Research by new scientists shows that being funny is genetically determined but has an assimilation feature that is affected by the family and cultural environment. Our cultural attitudes affect us as parents and children. So if even if your parents don’t have a sense of humor but you do they can, through conditioning either encourage or repress that trait.
Recently researchers studied 127 female twins: 71 were identical twins and the rest were fraternal. The twins entered the room and were asked to rate five Gary Larson cartoons from 1 to 10. Shockingly, the identical twins shared not any more typical reactions to the jokes than did the fraternal twins during the investigation. The fraternal ones regularly were in nearer understanding regarding which jokes appeared to be interesting and which cartoons were awful to watch. As a result, this study shows that it is the environment which plays a large role in our sense of humor or us being funny to a certain degree, not our heredity or genes.
Final Verdict
Recently, a rapid understanding of human chromosomes has shown that both sides are partially correct and controversial. Nature provides innate abilities and qualities. Educating and practicing humor will grow as these genetic trends and forms grow. But what side develops you being funny? Since scientists are working hard to find out which of us are genetically made this way and how big our environment plays its role in this, discussions on nature vs nurture are still up for debate but we know that both nature and nurture plays a role in our sense of humor and what we find funny.
We believe that nurture beats nature with a “sense of humor or being funny” based on research and scientific evidence. The level of humor depends on age and personality. Test results show that humorous parts of the brain tend to grow based on feedback. So, the more applause and appreciation you get when you crack your jokes, the more you will try to be funny. Nurturing is important. Which means if you even have a kernel of humor in your body you can nurture it to grow and become funnier. So don’t discount classes, coaches, or books as a way to nurture your sense of humor and ability to become funnier.