by Betty Bourquein

Created on: June 22, 2009   Last Updated: June 26, 2009

Humor is subjective. That said, there still may be times when humor is inappropriate or is simply not humorous.

A recent example of this is the Letterman-Palin controversy. Letterman, who, of course, has since apologized, thought he was making a joke about Sarah Palin's unwed pregnant daughter Bristol, being knocked up by A-Rod. It turns out that it was the fourteen year old daughter Willow, an innocent child at the ballpark, the setting for the joke. Still, it is never appropriate to link two people who don't even know each other in a crass joke about them. If our society had good social values, Letterman would be seen as a dirty old man. Too many though have rushed to his defense and given him a pass, simply because he is a respected comedian.

Other examples of jokes which should not be seen as humor are the ethnic jokes. Putting another group in a derogatory situation in which the group is portrayed as ignorant or is abased, does nothing to build community. It encourages hatred and mistrust. Often this sort of humor leads to even more malignment of groups which need encouragement and help to build themselves up in a culture which looks down on them anyway.

Attempts at religious humor can debase things which many revere. They show lack of respect for another's faith or value system. God is mocked. Acceptance of this further corrodes societal values.

Comedians sometime think that a good joke has to contain a lot of profanity to have impact. Profanity simply shows the lack of good communication skills. In no way should profanity be considered funny.

Other jokes which are not funny debase the opposite gender, especially if the joke is aimed at women. Too long in society have women been seen and treated as second class citizens. This stereotyping of the dumb blonde or the fiery-tempered redhead can have significant effect on how women are perceived and/or how they themselves perceive themselves. In some cases at the workplace, these jokes could be construed as sexual harassment.

Timing of the joke should be another consideration. Obviously nothing was funny about the destruction of the Twin Towers. Jokes made about this when the nation was in crisis would have been extremely offensive. With time, a nation may be able to see some humor in some of the things that happened in the aftermath of this, but usually this type of humor will never truly be funny.

Finally, there are the comedians who are intentionally sarcastic. Though many enjoy this type of humor, usually there is an anger associated with it that makes the jokes not that funny. The appeal of this type of humor is to a limited audience.

With all of the things which might make a joke inappropriate or not funny, one wonders what would make a good joke. Comments about the current economic or political situation are usually well-received. In the Eighteenth Century, Jonathan Swift, writing about the serving of the Irish children for dinner, made the point that the British government was devouring the Irish peasants. Although Swift's writing could be considered treasonous, because of its humor, it was well-received.

Slap-stick comedians are classic. They over-exaggerate their actions to achieve the desired effect. It is hard not to laugh at some of the antics.

Those who can play with words, using puns or double entendre, are always successful. Because there is some use of intellect, these jokes are universally accepted.

Humor is good for the soul and apparently even the physical body. Anything that relaxes the audience without impinging upon another makes for a good laugh. Usually these jokes are the ones we remember most. These jokes have real humor.

Learn more about this author, Betty Bourquein.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.