Humor defies explanation.—The humor of this story is cumulative. We may not parse it, we may not analyze it, we may not annotate it. We can simply enjoy it. And, if we cannot enjoy it, we may pray for a spiritual awakening, for such an endowment of the sense of humor as will enable us to enjoy, that we may no longer lead lives that are spiritually blind. Bill Nye wrote:
“The autumn leaves are falling,
They are falling everywhere;
They are falling through the atmosphere
And likewise through the air.”
Woe betide the teacher who tries to explain! There is no explanation—there is just the humor. If that eludes the reader, an explanation will not avail.
A teacher of Latin read to his pupils “The House-Boat on the Styx” in connection with their reading of the “Æneid.” It was good fun for them all, and never was Virgil more highly honored than in the assiduous study which those young people gave to his lines. They were eager to complete the study of the lesson in order to have more time for the “House-Boat.” The humor of the book opened wide the gates of their spirits through which the truths of the regular lesson passed blithely in.
Questions and Exercises
- What is the source of humor in a humorous story?
- When should the teacher laugh with the school? When should she not do so?
- How does the response of the school to a laughable incident reflect the leadership of the teacher?
- What can be done to bring more or better humor into the school?
- Compare as companions those whom you know who exhibit a sense of humor with those who do not.
- Compare their influence on others.
- What can be done to bring humor into essays written by the students?
- Distinguish between wit and humor. Does wit or humor cause most of the laughter in school?
- What is meant by an “aptitude for vicariousness”?
- How did Lincoln make use of humor? Is there any humor in the Gettysburg speech? Why?
- What is the relation of pathos to humor?
- Give an example from the writings of Mark Twain that shows him a philosopher as well as a humorist.
- What books could you read to the pupils to enliven some of the subjects that you teach?