Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email
Answers.com

laughter

 
(lăf'tər, läf'-) pronunciation
n.
  1. The act of laughing.
  2. The sound produced by laughing.
  3. Archaic. A cause or subject for laughter.

[Middle English, from Old English hleahtor.]


Search unanswered questions...
Enter a question here...
Search: All sources Community Q&A Reference topics

n

Definition: amusement
Antonyms: despair, gloom

We laugh at things that are laughable, but also laugh exultantly at a success, or bitterly at a failure, or at the unexpected or even the typical. We may even laugh but not at anything—with pure joy, or nervousness, or embarrassment, or merely because we have been physically tickled. The variety of causes or objects of laughter, and the absence of any obvious explanation of its function, have not deterred theorists. Hobbes thought that the passion of laughter is a ‘sudden glory arising from some sudden conception of some eminency in ourselves’ (Human Nature, ix. 12). Hutcheson wrote against the egoism of this account (‘Reflections on Laughter’, Dublin Journal, 1725), locating humour instead in a perception of incongruity, although he offered no real evidence that incongruity is either a necessary or a sufficient condition of something appearing comical. Bain (The Emotions and the Will, 1859) identifies the ludicrous with ‘the degradation of some person or interest possessing dignity, in circumstances that excite no other strong emotion’. Kant (Critique of Judgement, 1790) emphasizes the element of the unexpected, identifying laughter as ‘an affection arising from a strained expectation being suddenly reduced to nothing’. His view is expanded by Schopenhauer, who again finds incongruity at the basis of laughter. But as the Hobbes-Bain approach reminds us, it is not only the insult to reason that is funny but often the insult to other people. In his book Le Rire: essai sur la signification du comique (1900), perhaps anticipating the comedians Jacques Tati or Charlie Chaplin, Bergson locates comedy as a defence against automatic, disjointed qualities that trespass against the essential spontaneity of life.

The capacity to take something as an occasion for humour evidently has a social function: it connects with play and with the rehearsal and defusing of potential conflict, but also can give rise to the more aggressive exclusion of persons and groups from consideration, by refusal to take them seriously, or by mockery and ridicule.

Answer of the Day:

laughter

Top
A Baby Laughs -- He Has the Right Idea  
A Baby Laughs -- He Has the Right Idea
Ever hear the one about...? In two US studies, doctors have found that 15 minutes of laughter a day is good for the vascular system. They found that the blood flowed more freely in 9 out of 10 people while they were laughing, with average blood flow increasing some 22 percent. The physical benefits of laughing were similar to those people get when exercising, without the aches and pains. But -- we're not off the hook -- doctors say that we should continue to exercise at least three times a week. (story)

Previous:With e-readers and the Internet, do people still go to the library?
Next:leap of faith

From our Archives: Today's Highlights, March 17, 2005

Devil's Dictionary:

laughter

Top
A cynical view of the world by Ambrose Bierce


n.

An interior convulsion, producing a distortion of the features and accompanied by inarticulate noises. It is infectious and, though intermittent, incurable. Liability to attacks of laughter is one of the characteristics distinguishing man from the animals -- these being not only inaccessible to the provocation of his example, but impregnable to the microbes having original jurisdiction in bestowal of the disease. Whether laughter could be imparted to animals by inoculation from the human patient is a question that has not been answered by experimentation. Dr. Meir Witchell holds that the infection character of laughter is due to the instantaneous fermentation of sputa diffused in a spray. From this peculiarity he names the disorder Convulsio spargens.


Word Tutor:

laughter

Top
pronunciation

IN BRIEF: n. - The activity of expressing mirth.

pronunciation A day without laughter is a day wasted. — Charlie Chaplin

LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!

Sign Language Videos:

laughter

Top
sign description: Both open, flexible hands move in and out away from the body. This sign also is accompanied by a smiling facial expression.




Quotes About:

Laughter

Top

Quotes:

"Laughter does not seem to be a sin, but it leads to sin." - St. John Chrysosatom

"The laughter of man is more terrible than his tears, and takes more forms -- hollow, heartless, mirthless, maniacal." - James Thurber

"Not by wrath does one kill, but by laughter." - Friedrich Nietzsche

"If you like a man's laugh before you know anything of him, you may say with confidence that he is a good man." - Fyodor Dostoevsky

"The flower in the vase smiles, but no longer laughs." - Malcolm De Chazal

"Hearty laughter is a good way to jog internally without having to go outdoors." - Norman Cousins

See more famous quotes about Laughter

A man laughing

Laughing is a reaction to certain stimuli. Traditionally, it is considered a visual expression of happiness, or an inward feeling of joy.[citation needed] It may ensue from hearing a joke, being tickled, or other stimuli.

Laughter is a part of human behavior regulated by the brain, helping humans clarify their intentions in social interaction[citation needed] and providing an emotional context to conversations.[citation needed] Laughter is used as a signal for being part of a group — it signals acceptance and positive interactions with others.[citation needed] Laughter is sometimes seen as contagious, and the laughter of one person can itself provoke laughter from others as a positive feedback.[1] This may account in part for the popularity of laugh tracks in situation comedy television shows.[citation needed]

Laughter is anatomically caused by the epiglottis constricting the larynx.[citation needed]

The study of humor and laughter, and its psychological and physiological effects on the human body, is called gelotology.

Contents

Nature of laughter

Laughter is a common response to tickling
Two girls laughing

Children are known to laugh a great deal more than adults: an average baby laughs around 300 times a day compared to an average adult, who laughs around 20 times a day, however this can depend on a person's personality. According to some studies, the onset of adulthood causes a gradual change characterized by increased seriousness and a diminished engagement in laughter.[2] Laughter is an audible expression or appearance of excitement, an inward feeling of joy. It may ensue from jokes, tickling, and other stimuli. Researchers have shown infants as early as 17 days old have vocal laughing sounds or laughter.[3] It conflicts with earlier studies indicating that infants usually start to laugh at about four months of age. Laughter researcher Robert Provine said: "Laughter is a mechanism everyone has; laughter is part of universal human vocabulary. There are thousands of languages, hundreds of thousands of dialects, but everyone speaks laughter in pretty much the same way.” Babies have the ability to laugh before they ever speak. Children who are born blind and deaf still retain the ability to laugh.[citation needed]

Provine argues that “Laughter is primitive, an unconscious vocalization.” Provine argues that it probably is genetic. In a study of the “Giggle Twins”, two happy twins who were separated at birth and only reunited 43 years later, Provine reports that “until they met each other, neither of these exceptionally happy ladies had known anyone who laughed as much as she did.” They reported this even though they both had been brought together by their adoptive parents, who they indicated were “undemonstrative and dour.” He indicates that the twins “inherited some aspects of their laugh sound and pattern, readiness to laugh, and maybe even taste in humor.”[4]

Norman Cousins developed a recovery program incorporating megadoses of Vitamin C, along with a positive attitude, love, faith, hope, and laughter induced by Marx Brothers films. "I made the joyous discovery that ten minutes of genuine belly laughter had an anesthetic effect and would give me at least two hours of pain-free sleep," he reported. "When the pain-killing effect of the laughter wore off, we would switch on the motion picture projector again and not infrequently, it would lead to another pain-free interval."[5][6]

Scientists have noted the similarity in forms of laughter induced by tickling among various primates, which suggests that laughter derives from a common origin among primate species.[7][8]

A very rare neurological condition has been observed whereby the sufferer is unable to laugh out loud, a condition known as aphonogelia.[9]

Laughter and the brain

Principal fissures and lobes of the cerebrum viewed laterally. (Frontal lobe is blue, temporal lobe is green.)

Neurophysiology indicates that laughter is linked with the activation of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, that produces endorphins.[10] Scientists have shown that parts of the limbic system are involved in laughter. This system is involved in emotions and helps us with functions necessary for humans' survival. The structures in the limbic system that are involved in laughter: the hippocampus and the amygdala.[11]

The December 7, 1984, Journal of the American Medical Association describes the neurological causes of laughter as follows:

"Although there is no known 'laugh center' in the brain, its neural mechanism has been the subject of much, albeit inconclusive, speculation. It is evident that its expression depends on neural paths arising in close association with the telencephalic and diencephalic centers concerned with respiration. Wilson considered the mechanism to be in the region of the mesial thalamus, hypothalamus, and subthalamus. Kelly and co-workers, in turn, postulated that the tegmentum near the periaqueductal grey contains the integrating mechanism for emotional expression. Thus, supranuclear pathways, including those from the limbic system that Papez hypothesised to mediate emotional expressions such as laughter, probably come into synaptic relation in the reticular core of the brain stem. So while purely emotional responses such as laughter are mediated by subcortical structures, especially the hypothalamus, and are stereotyped, the cerebral cortex can modulate or suppress them."

Laughter and health

Bush and Berlusconi laughing

A link between laughter and healthy function of blood vessels was first reported in 2005 by researchers at the University of Maryland Medical Center with the fact that laughter causes the dilatation of the inner lining of blood vessels, the endothelium, and increases blood flow.[12] Drs. Michael Miller (University of Maryland) and William Fry (Stanford), theorize that beta-endorphin like compounds released by the hypothalamus activate receptors on the endothelial surface to release nitric oxide, thereby resulting in dilation of vessels. Other cardioprotective properties of nitric oxide include reduction of inflammation and decreased platelet aggregation.[13][14]

Laughter has also been shown to have beneficial effects on various other aspects of biochemistry. For example, laughter has been shown to lead to reductions in stress hormones such as cortisol and epinephrine. When laughing the brain also releases endorphins that can relieve some physical pain.[15] Laughter also boosts the number of antibody-producing cells and enhances the effectiveness of T-cells, leading to a stronger immune system.[16]

Causes

Late 19th century or early 20th century depiction of different stages of laughter on advertising cards

Common causes for laughter are sensations of joy and humor; however, other situations may cause laughter as well.

A general theory that explains laughter is called the relief theory. Sigmund Freud summarized it in his theory that laughter releases tension and "psychic energy". This theory is one of the justifications of the beliefs that laughter is beneficial for one's health.[17] This theory explains why laughter can be used as a coping mechanism when one is upset, angry or sad.

Philosopher John Morreall theorizes that human laughter may have its biological origins as a kind of shared expression of relief at the passing of danger. Friedrich Nietzsche, by contrast, suggested laughter to be a reaction to the sense of existential loneliness and mortality that only humans feel.

For example: a joke creates an inconsistency and the audience automatically try to understand what the inconsistency means; if they are successful in solving this 'cognitive riddle' and they realize that the surprise was not dangerous, they laugh with relief. Otherwise, if the inconsistency is not resolved, there is no laugh, as Mack Sennett pointed out: "when the audience is confused, it doesn't laugh". This is one of the basic laws of a comedian, referred to "exactness". It is important to note that sometimes the inconsistency may be resolved and there may still be no laugh. Because laughter is a social mechanism, an audience may not feel as if they are in danger, and the laugh may not occur. In addition, the extent of the inconsistency (and aspects of it timing and rhythm) has to do with the amount of danger the audience feels, and how hard or long they laugh. This explanation is confirmed by modern neurophysiology in the study of laughter and the brain.

Laughter can also be brought on by tickling. Although it's found unpleasant by most people, being tickled often causes heavy laughter which is thought to be a reflex of the body, and is often uncontrollable.[18][19]

Human Laugh Structure and Anatomy

A laughing woman

A normal laugh has the structure of “ha-ha-ha” or “ho-ho-ho.” It is unnatural, and one is physically unable to have a laugh structure of “ha-ho-ha-ho.” The usual variations of a laugh most often occur in the first or final note in a sequence- therefore, “ho-ha-ha” or “ha-ha-ho” laughs are possible. Normal note durations with unusually long or short “inter-note intervals” do not happen due to the result of the limitations of our vocal cords. This basic structure allows one to recognize a laugh despite individual variants.[20]

It has also been determined that eyes moisten during laughter as a reflex from the tear glands.[16]

Negative aspects

Laughter is not always a pleasant experience and is associated with several negative phenomena. Excessive laughter can lead to cataplexy, and unpleasant laughter “spells”, excessive elation, and fits of laughter can all be considered negative aspects of laughter. Unpleasant laughter spells, or “sham mirth,” usually occur in people who have a neurological condition; including patients with pseudobulbar palsy, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease. These patients appear to be laughing out of amusement but report that they are feeling undesirable sensations “at the time of the punch line". Excessive elation is a common symptom associated with manic-depressive psychoses and mania/hypomania. Those who suffer from schizophrenic psychoses seem to suffer the opposite- they do not understand humor or get any joy out of it. A fit describes an abnormal time when one cannot control the laughter or one’s body- sometimes leading to seizures or a brief period of unconsciousness. Some believe that fits of laughter represent a form of epilepsy.[21]

See also

References

  1. ^ Camazine, Deneubourg, Franks, Sneyd, Theraulaz, Bonabeau, Self-Organization in Biological Systems, Princeton University Press, 2003. ISBN 0-691-11624-5 --ISBN 0-691-01211-3 (pbk.) p. 18.
  2. ^ "Do Children Laugh Much More Often than Adults Do?". http://aath.org/articles/art_martin.html. Retrieved 2011-09-23. 
  3. ^ doi:10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2005.07.011
  4. ^ "WebMD 2002". Men.webmd.com. http://men.webmd.com/features/why-do-we-laugh. Retrieved 2011-12-26. 
  5. ^ Cousins, Norman, The Healing Heart : Antidotes to Panic and Helplessness, New York : Norton, 1983. ISBN 0-393-01816-4.
  6. ^ Cousins, Norman, Anatomy of an illness as perceived by the patient : reflections on healing and regeneration, introd. by René Dubos, New York : Norton, 1979. ISBN 0-393-01252-2.
  7. ^ "Tickled apes yield laughter clue", News.BBC.co.uk, June 4, 2009.
  8. ^ " doi:10.1016/j.cub.2009.05.028", Reconstructing the evolution of laughter in great apes and humans.
  9. ^ "Archneurpsyc.ama-assn.org". Archneurpsyc.ama-assn.org. 1930-07-16. doi:10.1001/archneurpsyc.1931.02230010169012. http://archneurpsyc.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/summary/25/1/157. Retrieved 2011-12-26. 
  10. ^ Why Laughter Feels So Good 13 September 2011 New York Times science section.
  11. ^ The Laughing Brain article serries at the Dana Foundation
  12. ^ Miller M, Mangano C, Park Y, Goel R, Plotnick GD, Vogel RA.(2005). Impact of cinematic viewing on endothelial function.Heart.Feb;92(2):261-2.PMID
  13. ^ Miller M, Fry W.(2009).Medical Hypothesis.Nov;73(5):636-9.PMID
  14. ^ Vlachopoulos C, Xaplanteris P, Alexopoulos N, Aznaouridis K, Vasiliadou C, Baou K, Stefanadi E, Stefanadis C. (2009). Divergent effects of laughter and mental stress on arterial stiffness and central hemodynamics. Psychosom Med. May;71(4):446-53.PMID 19251872
  15. ^ "Why Laughter May Be the Best Pain Killer". Scientific American. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=why-laughter-may-be-the-best-pain-medicine. Retrieved 11 October 2011. 
  16. ^ a b Smith Lee, B. (1990). Humor relations for nurse managers. Nursing Management, 21, 86.
  17. ^ M.P. Mulder, A. Nijholt (2002) "Humor Research: State of the Art", citeseer.ist.psu.edu
  18. ^ "Physiology of laughter and tickling". www.tomveatch.com. http://www.tomveatch.com/else/humor/paper/node33.html. Retrieved 2010-08-03. 
  19. ^ Robert R. Provine (1950-09-09). "Provine, Laughter". Cogweb.ucla.edu. http://cogweb.ucla.edu/Abstracts/Provine_96.html. Retrieved 2011-12-26. 
  20. ^ Provine, R. (1996). Laughter. American Scientist, 841, 38-47
  21. ^ Fry, W.F. (1963). Sweet Madness: A Study of Humor. Palo Alto, Ca: Pacific Books Publishers

Further reading

External links


Translations:

Laughter

Top

Dansk (Danish)
n. - latter, munterhed

idioms:

  • burst into laughter    briste i latter, komme til at grine

Nederlands (Dutch)
gelach, het lachen

Français (French)
n. - rires

idioms:

  • burst into laughter    éclater de rire

Deutsch (German)
n. - Gelächter, Lachen

idioms:

  • burst into laughter    platzen in Gelächter

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - γέλιο, γέλια

idioms:

  • burst into laughter    ξεκαρδίζομαι στα γέλια

Italiano (Italian)
risata

idioms:

  • burst into laughter    scoppiare a ridere

Português (Portuguese)
n. - gargalhada (f)

idioms:

  • burst into laughter    dar uma gargalhada

Русский (Russian)
смех

idioms:

  • burst into laughter    разразиться смехом

Español (Spanish)
n. - risa, risas, carcajada

idioms:

  • burst into laughter    romper en carcajadas

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - skratt, munterhet

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
笑, 笑声

idioms:

  • burst into laughter    突然大笑

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 笑, 笑聲

idioms:

  • burst into laughter    突然大笑

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 웃음 , 웃음소리, 즐거운 표정

idioms:

  • burst into laughter    웃음을 터뜨리다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 笑い, 笑い声

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) الضحك‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮צחוק‬


Best of the Web:

laughter

Top

Some good "laughter" pages on the web:


How?
science.howstuffworks.com
 
 
 
Related topics:
geliophobia
Hufeland, Christoph Wilhelm (Quotes By)
laughingly

Related answers:
Is there a synonym for laughter? Read answer...
What are the benefits of laughter? Read answer...
Who invented laughter? Read answer...

Help us answer these:
What is light where is the laughter?
When is laughter appropriate?
How is laughter powerful?

Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:

 

Copyrights:

American Heritage Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Roget's Thesaurus. Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary Copyright © 1995 byHoughton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Answers Corporation Antonyms by Answers.com. © 1999-present by Answers Corporation. All rights reserved.  Read more
Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy. The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy. Copyright © 1994, 1996, 2005 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more
Answers Corporation Answer of the Day. © 1999-present by Answers Corporation. All rights reserved.  Read more
Devil's Dictionary. Devil's Dictionary by Ambrose Bierce, 1911  Read more
Word Tutor. Copyright © 2004-present by eSpindle Learning, a 501(c) nonprofit organization. All rights reserved.
eSpindle provides personalized spelling and vocabulary tutoring online; sign up free Read more
Sign Language Videos. Copyright © 2009 Signing Savvy, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
Quotes About. Copyright © 2005 QuotationsBook.com. All rights reserved.  Read more
 Rhymes. Oxford University Press. © 2006, 2007 All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia on Answers.com. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Laughter Read more
Translations. Copyright © 2007, WizCom Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved.  Read more

Follow us
Facebook Twitter
YouTube