Comedy, the Best Persuasion!








Ryan begins his comedic sketch by cutting straight to the elephant in the room, his big happy face.  By cutting directly to the point, he beats us to the very thoughts which would have surely surfaced in our minds.  "This guy has kind of a creepy happy expression on his face at all times."  Because he makes fun of himself, we are persuaded to look past his physical features and focus more on the fact that he is a funny guy.

Comedy is one of the quickest forms of persuasion because we so often make decisions based off of pathos, so the ability to invoke emotion is a powerful one.  Bringing laughter to someone releases good endorphins that make a person feel better.  If someone can consistently deliver good jokes and invite laughter, the receiving audience will then associate that person with good feelings.  We are persuaded to believe that if we listen to the funny guy, we will be happy.  Our brain will wire us to pay attention whenever that person begins to talk or is present in some form.

Many successful comedians we see are people we wouldn't consider putting on the cover of Vogue.  Hollywood is filled with beautiful people, physical standards that are desirable and attractive.  Comedians are a crowd of their own coming in all kinds of average shapes, sizes and looks.  A common trait that we find is that comedians have the ability to stand confidently on stage and make fun of themselves in front of thousands.  Kevin Hart continually uses his short height as material.  Will Smith readily points out the way his ears sticks out and turns it into some sort of punchline.  Conan O' Brian will joke about his red hair and tall thin frame.

If we all could point out our own flaws and laugh them of with our peers we might have an incredible boost of confidence and a lot less bullying.  Comedy is the best persuasion because we are convinced to look past the superficial things in life and feel a happiness inside that is brought on by laughter.

Comments

  1. English 312November 9, 2017 at 9:34 AM

    I agree with your beginning statement in your second paragraph. Perhaps we could all be more like Ryan and laugh at ourselves instead of at others.

    ReplyDelete

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