A comparative and cross-cultural study of irony, sarcasm, and stereotypes in north american, english, and chilean stand-up comedies

Abstract

Humour is an aspect of social interaction we are often exposed to. We experience it in everyday situation. In fact, many people even make a living out of being funny.That is they are professional humour makers. Some good representatives of this activity are stand-up comedians. Not surprisingly, humour is a complex social and psychological phenomenon. People may wonder: why do some people laugh when a comedian tells a certain joke but when they hear the exact same joke from another comedian they do not find it at all amusing? The ability to understand humor and be able to enjoy it is called “sense of humour”. People‟s personality plays a crucial role when it comes to explain people´s sense of humour. Another important factor that defines their sense of humour is their culture. People from different cultural backgrounds share different social norms, codes, and beliefs. Hence, culture will also deeply influence the things we laugh about. Therefore, our sense of humour will vary according to the cultural community that we live in because we have a given cultural background which molds our collective sense of humour