Essay On Superiority In Humor

Do superiority and humor go hand in hand? Philosophers Kant, Schopenhouer, Darwin, and Baudelaire all have differing opinions when it comes to humor. However, there is a common theme among all of them. This common theme is the belief that a superior person creating humor out of something or someone inferior is what people find to be funny. This superiority of humor is demonstrated in multiple ways to this day through the use of media. This essay will discuss if there is truly superiority in humor, and if this superiority is necessarily bad. In my opinion, there is definitely superiority in humor - and while it could be considered bad, it is also simply human nature. In order to understand superiority in humor, one must first analyze the beliefs of philosophers that have discussed it. One of these philosophers is Kant. According to Kant, “Humour in the good sense means the talent of being able voluntarily to put oneself into certain mental disposition, in which …show more content…
Kant claims that humor in itself is when a person can put themselves in an inferior position to make another feel superior. Meanwhile, Schopenhouer states that when people find themselves to be inferior in any way, they more often than not laugh at themselves and create humor out of it. Darwin may not touch upon superiority in humor much, but he does touch upon how it is a normal part of human development and growth because it is seen in even the youngest of childen. Baudelaire, on the other hand, largely discusses superiority in humor. He strongly believes that superiority in humor is a bad thing. While I am not denying that superiority in humor can be bad, I believe that it is acceptable as long as it is not hurting someone. Humans wanting to feel superior than one another is natural, and humor can be the perfect outlet for this