Humor, as it is used today, is a generally positive connotation for anything that people do or say that evokes mirth and laughter out of others. This general concept of humor has developed only recently in modern day society. Interestingly enough this word has developed over centuries and has completely changed in meaning with new connotations for invoking laughter. Humor initially began as a Latin word (humorem) meaning fluid or liquid. As of today it still pertains to references of physiology such as bodily fluids, and aqueous and vitreous humors of the eye.
It was the Greek physician Hippocrates who thought that good health depended on proper balance of four fluids or “humors” of the body, namely blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile. This idea of humors possessing life-like qualities lead to the observations of the Greek physician Galen, who stated that these humors were associated with specific psychological traits, and therefore having an excess of any one of these 4 humors could change your temperament entirely.
These views of humor are still noted in common colloquialism today when we speak of someone being a “good-humored person” or “in a bad humor. ” Because the idea of humor was initially tied to physical substance, humor gradually developed psychological connotations relating to both enduring temperament and temporary mood.
Until the sixteenth century, however, it still did not have any association with connotations of funniness or laughter. As time progressed through history, some people were viewed as the object of laughter, and therefore were labelled as a “humorist” whereas a “man of humor” was someone who enjoyed imitating the peculiarities of a humorist.
Humor then came to be seen as a talent involving the ability to make others laugh rather than just being the object of laughter itself. It wasn’t until the 19th century, however, that the term humorist took on the modern meaning of someone who creates a product called “humor” in order to amuse others. Humor has commonly been used as a tension relief tactic and is commonly noted in its role in coping with life stress and adversity. As society has evolved, humans have subliminally used non- serious play of humor as a means of cognitively managing everyday stress that threaten their well-being, by easing the tension of a situation with humor to make it laughable.
Sub-tactics of humor include making jokes, laughing at a situation to defuse the tension, and/or to shift the overall perspective of the conversation to avoid potential conflict. By taking away from the overall severity of a conversation with situational satire, this creates an opportunity for the people involved to think more broadly and flexibly and to engage in creative problem solving.
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