Live, Laugh, Love... or Die Trying: How to Use Humor to Reveal the Absurdity of the Human Condition
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Authors
Andrew D. Downs
Issue Date
2025-12
Type
Language
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Abstract
Description
"Funny is often treated as frivolous, a window-dressing, or the additive sprinkled at the table to give the meal some flavor. But when exploring our world, one often discovers life itself has a great sense of humor. What if the writer’s job has less to do with describing their world with wit and wisdom and more to do with seeking the fullness life has to offer and finding clever ways to capture it for the delight of their audience? And, in so doing, revealing that these efforts start and end with connection? Through the examples of absurdist works by Tom Stoppard and Samuel Beckett, the dark wit of Franz Kafka and Kurt Vonnegut, and a cast of stand-up comedians, I suggest ways a storyteller can grow their relationship with the audience and invite humor to direct their stories, even into the most difficult of subjects of life and death."