Colonial American Humorism

While some humorists only do their comedy for entertainment, many base their work on critiques of society. In this and any other sense, Alain de Botton’s view is a correct one; a humorist’s vital role in society is to say what others cannot through comedy. Humorists have the rare opportunity to express their ideas discreetly, and the importance of humor has established itself as a critical turning point in gaining public acceptance and approval, exposing the outrageous traditions of mainstream society, and as a commentator on everyday life. To begin, many humorists turn to satire to ridicule the accepted customs in mainstream society. In Jonathan Swift’s novel, Gulliver’s Travels, the conflict between the Blefuscudians and the Lilliputians started over which way people should break eggs.

One example is the first political cartoon in America. In order to rally support for colonial centripetally, Benjamin Franklin printed a comic that depicted a snake, cut into pieces, and the phrase, “Join or Die”. Capitalizing on a common belief in the colonial America, many people believed back then that a severed snake would come back to life if the pieces were joined before nightfall. By creating the political cartoon in America, Benjamin Franklin successfully influenced an entire nation of people to come together and unite the colonies with his comic.

In addition, many forms of humorists as commentators exist in modern society. With the invention of the internet and television, humor can influence people faster than ever. Some examples of modern humor that impact popular culture would be late night shows like SNL. On SNL’s recreations of the recent Democratic and Republican debates, the writers’ exaggerations of the candidates’ abhorrent and basic qualities show how ridiculous they all are. With their exaggerations of political and other famous figures, people can truly see who they are looking up