When life gets boring or stressful, jokes are always there to cheer us up. Whether they be appropriate or immature, their comedy brings a feeling of happiness.

August 16 was national tell a joke day. The first recorded national tell a joke day is unknown, but the idea of a joke dates back to at least 1900 B.C.E.

The purpose of a joke is to entertain the people around you. The desired response is laughter, but when this reaction does not occur, and then the joke has become a bust.

Language arts teacher David Proctor says that jokes in literature helps grab the readers.
“Jokes in literature create a sense of safety,” Proctor said. “It also helps involve the audience and lightens the mood of a dark story. My favorite joke is the Aristocrats. Also, the more absurd the joke is the more enjoyable and funny it becomes.”

The first ever joke in history was a fart joke that happened in ancient Sumer. From there, jokes have evolved from simple techniques to outlandish tales.

Junior Jonathan Knop thinks that jokes lighten your day, while junior Noah Pumphrey feels that jokes relieve stress from your day.

“Whenever I hear a joke, I feel relieved,” Knop said. “The main reason to tell a joke is to lighten somebodies day. It takes you away from bad moments in life.”

“My favorite joke is where there is a blond, a brunette, and a redhead stranded in a boat. A lamp comes along and out pops a genie. He says that they each have a wish. The redhead wishes to not be bored, so the genie takes her home. The brunette wishes to not be bored, so the genie takes her home. When the blond wishes to not be bored, the genie brings the brunette and the redhead back.”

“Jokes create a happy feeling,” Pumphrey said. “The main reason people tell jokes are to relieve stress from their life. It is also meant to make life easier and joyful. My favorite jokes are the ones they tell on Saturday Night Live.”

Some rules to follow by when telling a joke are precision, rhythm, wit, and humor. Precision is mostly used to provide an in-focus image. In contrast, the rhythm is the rule get causes the laughter, not the content. The wit is to keep the joke on a constant idea and the humor is to produce the emotion.

National tell a joke day is a day was to let that inner comedian come out and to brighten the day of all the people that listen.

Websites:

http://www.prongo.com/jokes/index.asp

More Mature Audience: http://jokes.cc.com/