The Neuroskeptic recently posted a comment on a study
examining “joke addiction as a neurological symptom.” Apparently, some patients
with brain damage develop a compulsion to joke all the time, and seem most obsessed
with pun-based punch lines. Curiously, this usually happens to individuals who
have suffered some brain damage on the right side of the brain. Could “neurotypicals”
develop a similar tendency? In fact, this blog post reminded me of several
American friends and colleagues (who seem to suffer from a milder form of
compulsive wiseckracking), my favorite sitcoms, and much of British and
American humor (to say nothing of a few jokes in the comments section beneath
the Neuroskeptik’s text).
Come to think of it, Iain McGilchrist may have a
point when he claims (The Master and His
Emissary) that Western culture has become overly left-brained – despite the
habitual refutations from other neuroscientists. And this could, indeed, be a
key feature of the “weird” Western brain/mind whose tendencies have been
largely conflated with universal human inclinations (as pointed out by the now
famous Henrich/Heine/Norenzayan trio). On the opposite extreme of the humor
spectrum would probably be Persians. In Iranian movies, no one ever laughs – and
if there is a line resembling a joke, it’s usually dead serious and rarely
elicits a smile. I am wondering how this cultural contrast played out in
negotiations leading to the nuclear deal and lifting of sanctions. And how it
might affect interpretations of the other side’s intentions in the verification
phase.
