The Therapy of Comedy

Comedy and Terror

September 11th, 2001 was the day we all lost our sense of humour.

I count myself among us as mine vanished as well.

For over a week we as a society seemed unable to laugh. This was never more evident than in the Late Night Comedy Shows. Once they resumed the tone was sombre, even tearful. I really felt sorry for them, it's tough to make people laugh when your guests are breaking down in tears.

Now that some time has elapsed what is the place of humour in times of terror? Is it even OK to laugh?

Victor Frankl, a psychiatrist and Nazi concentration camp survivor wrote a book called "Mans Search for Meaning" and in it talked about what humour meant to people that were in such a horrific situation.

"Humor is another of the soul's weapons in the fight for self-preservation. It is well known that humor more than anything else in the human makeup, can afford an aloofness and an ability to rise above any situation, even if only for a few seconds."

The role of humour, in any form, for a person in this situation is to try and take some control of something you have no control over. This is where "Black Humour" comes in. People that are in jobs or situations that deal in the darker side of life, need to be able to "joke" about what is happening. This allows them to function and not get burned out.

For the rest of us I suggest that we should be more careful in the jokes we use...especially in front of children and in public. To make fun of a group or attack the beliefs of will just fuel hatred and intolerance. I know we are in shock with the events, but this is a time to rise above the usual comedy that comes from singling out one ethnic group or religious faction.

Instead try to make your jokes about you. How were you affected by the events? I used this one to open up some of the comedy shows immediately after Sept. 11.

"I have to admit the whole day scared me silly. I kept hearing we were now at war and that the military was on high alert. But I really became concerned when the Canadian Navy put the submarines in West Edmonton Mall on stand by". Not the funniest but just an attempt to ease some of the tension.

By Derek Wilken