A Moment of Laughter

One of my most recent fits of laughter occurred as it usually does: with my roommate, Allyson.

We were sitting together studying and working on homework a few days ago in our dorm, and naturally we were miserable. In these kinds of situations we usually turn to our favorite study break, YouTube. That day, however, we opted for a different approach. I am enrolled in a Development Psychology class this semester, and part of course assignments is to take care of a Virtual Child. It is an online program where you raise a virtual baby from birth to eighteen years of age, and you get to see how your parenting choices could possibly influence the trajectory of development. In our syllabus it states that "you and your imaginary partner" will take part in rearing, meaning that each student has their own virtual offspring instead of pairing up with a classmate. Allyson and I decided that it would be much more fun if instead of an imaginary partner, I raised the baby with her.

Thus on this study break we decided to start looking at baby names. Given our personalities there was no way our child was going to get off with a generic name. We debated taking the "celebrity route" of naming our child after abstract ideas, inanimate objects (Jason Lee's son Pilot Inspektor was a big inspiration), or just random names we found. What really got us belly laughing however was when we decided our child would have a generic name with an obscure spelling. Allyson and I both have alternate forms of our names, so we thought it was only fitting that our baby follow the tradition. The difference (and the laughter) came from the level of obscurity we achieved.

It is amazing the spellings that are legitimately suggested when you do a simple internet search. The boy names started with just one or two letter switches; "Scott" was spelled "Skott", "George" became "Gorje". Soon the list became more and more random, giving us names like "Dayvid/Dafydd", "Felip", and "Dafne". Of course we soon took matters into our own hands and created our own literal spellings of names, coming up with "Micinseigh" (Mackenzie) , "Pahtreque" (Patrick),  "Sckaht" (Scott), and my personal favorite, "Airwrecka" (Erica). By the end of our search we had tears in our eyes and had probably made a lot of enemies due to our disruptive laughter.

I think my favorite part of this story is that there is no explanation as to why we thought this whole ordeal was so funny. You can argue that it was the unexpectedness and ridiculousness of the alternate spellings, almost sending us into shocked laughter. Or maybe it was the irony that these were generic names made absurd by taking phonetic spelling to an extreme level. Yet when I tried to share the humor with some of my sorority sisters, they didn't seem to get it. It was one of those "You Had To Be There" stories. While the initial lack of enthusiasm of the listener may be awkward and disappointing, those kinds of laughing fits and funny stories are special and necessary because they reaffirm the relationship between the people who are a part of it. This "inside joke" is something Allyson and I share, and it brings us closer to know we share a sense of humor. In my experience this can be one of the strongest bond-building moments, and it seems to me to be one reason why laughter exists.

Why Do People Laugh? What Makes People Laugh?

Former students were asked to answers these questions in light of what they learned and have reflected on from taking this same course last semester.

Answering the Impossible Questions: What is Literature? What is Civilization?

Kiley Hiett, Kira Markus, Ali Rafetto

ENGL 20923

Each person was asked to come up with a ‘definition’-type answer to the questions asked below.

·      “What is literature?”

o   Mary Kate: “Books! It’s the written expression of the human condition.”

o   Madeleine: “The art of written work.”

o   Teryn: “What is it not?”

·      “What is civilization?”

o   Mary Kate: “The inhabitants of a place, but also the culture that they make.”

o   Madeleine: “A group of people that live together with common things about them.”

o   Teryn: “A bunch of people living together.”