Funny Top Ten Lists and the Female Sense of Humor

Funny Top Ten Lists and the Female Sense of Humor Most attempts to explain the nature of the female sense of humor have focused upon two closely related questions: How does a woman's sense of humor differ from that of a man? And secondly, what topics do women find funny?

There is a general consensus that the answers are as follows: Men enjoy a brand of humor that relies upon insensitive put downs and insults to make fun of other people with whom they do not closely identify. Women, on the other hand, prefer humorous descriptions of situations in which they can easily see themselves. They enjoy humor that says, we've all been there and done that. Weren't we an absolute hoot? The serious side of humor. Unfortunately, this traditional focus upon finding out exactly what makes women laugh has caused us to overlook the fact that humor actually serves a much higher purpose in our lives: Namely, finding a suitable mate! In order to more fully understand the ways in which humor operates between the sexes, we must pay more attention to the fact that humor has always been one of the most important tools that women use to evaluate the desirability of potential mates. Once we open our minds to this "higher function" of humor, it becomes clear that we are much more likely to discover the truth about the female sense of humor by studying anthropology, rather than comedy. The all-female detective agency. Women try to avoid men who debase and objectify women, or merely want to use them for recreational sex. Fortunately, they can obtain valuable clues about such tendencies by evaluating a man's sense of humor, which serves as the proverbial "window to his soul." Whenever we watch men and women interacting socially, the men are constantly making humorous remarks, and the women are encouraging them, by responding with gales of laughter. Not surprisingly, there is a large body of scientific evidence which proves what we intuitively suspect from such observations: Women are the choosier sex, and because they strongly prefer funny men, the male of the species has learned to use his sense of humor to successfully compete with other men for female attention. What is it about a good sense of humor that makes it so desirable to women? It's a reliable sign of higher intelligence. Millions of years of evolution have taught women that an intelligent man is more likely to successfully compete against other men for the resources that are needed to support a wife and children. Plus, he will pass on his intelligent genes to their children, who will share in the enormous advantages of superior intelligence. Never mess with Mother Nature. Because we have consistently failed to recognize the subtle ways in which humor operates between the sexes, women have unjustifiably developed a reputation for lacking a sense of humor. Yet the simple fact is that it has never been a woman's job to be funny! Mother Nature wisely gave women the task of evaluating humor; not initiating it. She also arranged things so that every society would place a great deal of pressure on women to avoid engaging in any behavior that is normally associated with the opposite sex. Therefore, a woman who tries to be funny can get into trouble in two ways: First, she is engaging in unnatural, and hence forbidden, male behavior. And secondly, if she is perceived to be funnier (smarter) than the men around her, she is likely to be viewed as a threat by many of those men. It should come as no great surprise that a funny, witty female makes both men and women uncomfortable. They instinctively sense that by being funny, she is violating one of nature's unwritten, yet rather strictly enforced, rules. Making a list and checking it twice. All of this information about the female sense of humor can be directly applied to funny top ten lists. It has long been believed that funny top ten lists are designed for, and primarily enjoyed by, a male audience. The reasoning goes like this: funny top ten lists have a format which consists of a headline (the set up), followed by ten punch lines. Since men love one-liners, and women prefer stories about familiar experiences, humorous top ten lists are the ideal format for males. That line of reasoning is undoubtedly true; as far as it goes. It just doesn't go far enough. That's because there is another way to view humorous top ten lists: the headline is the title of a familiar story which just happens to be told in ten short chapters. By exerting a little extra care and effort, the female sense of humor can usually be successfully accommodated in funny top ten lists. The key is to make sure that we are sensitive to the importance of using gender appropriate humor and themes in all of our lists. Copyright 2009. Funniest Top Ten Lists. All rights reserved. Funny Top Ten Lists and the Female Sense of Humor