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The use of humorous texts in the writing class can help students improve skills in effective writing while encouraging critical thinking and an increased range in expression. In addition, because of the accessible nature of humor and the focus on purpose and audience that is necessary when writing it, students show a natural inclination toward peer review and recursive writing, with an enthusiasm that is often lacking when working with traditional texts in the writing class.
Humor-whether it's being analyzed, used or created-forces people's minds into modes of thinking that are investigative, seeking, grasping ...
-Alleen Pace Nilsen et al.
Barbara, a high school language arts teacher, tells the following personal anecdote to her class, who appeared to be dozing off in the middle of a lesson during which she was explicating a scene from The Great Gatsby:
One day, my husband and his buddies were joking around, taking turns making grand claims of physical superiority and slinging jibes declaring the ability to run faster or throw farther than every other guy in the group. Goaded, one of the guys (the "new guy") turned to my husband and said, "Yeah, well I can do more push-ups than you and your father combined!" My husband, with a solemn look, said, "Dude, my dad lost both his arms in the war ..." and a hush fell over the group. A horrified look came over the new guy as he sputtered, apologized, and took back the claim. My husband and the other guys then burst out laughing while pointing at a photograph of my husband and his father flexing their arms at each other.
This brief anecdote was used by Barbara to make more accessible a scene in The Great Gatsby where the character had put his foot in his mouth. Barbara then proceeded to ask her students to share similar stories in which they may have witnessed or even been more than just a spectator in a similar foot-tasting. The students' hands shot up, and their shared stories and laughter invigorated the once silent and still classroom.
In this classroom scenario, it would appear that Barbara just used a funny story to liven up her class. Though the enjoyable element of humor is indeed an important...