The joke for Freud

One of the geniuses of Sigmund Freud is that he noticed everyday phenomena. which for most students of the mind were of no importance. One of them is jokes. The joke for Freud is much more than a witty or nice way of thinking about reality.

His work summit on this topic is The joke and its relation to the unconscious. It was published in 1905 and in it Freud analyzes the characteristics, elements and motivations behind those everyday jokes that most of us laugh at. He thought perhaps they revealed more than we could see on their surface.

As a curiosity, Sigmund Freud wrote this work simultaneously with another of his great productions: Three essays on sexual theory . He had both manuscripts on the desk at the same time. He stopped writing in one to write in the other, which did not harm at all, at least in terms of style and reflective depth, the quality of the two works.

Origins of the psychoanalytic theory of jokes

When Freud was carrying out his first studies on the unconscious and the psychic apparatus, he discovered that, within it, there are places full of representations and forgetfulness. This is how he proposed his first hypothesis: Dreams are a way to access the unconscious. We find this statement in the volumes of Interpretation of Dreams written in 1900, being the masterpiece of this author.

However, at the same time, Freud found other ways to access the unconscious, one of them being the joke. His proposal was that, sometimes, the subject can dream in a comical way. Who hasn’t found themselves laughing in the middle of the night over something that may seem forgotten the next day? From there he began to discover that jokes have a close relationship with the unconscious.to the point that most psychoanalysts use it as analysis material in their offices.

The joke technique for Freud

The joke for Freud is based on 6 techniques basic: condensation, displacement, double meaning, the use of the same material, the pun or joke for similarity and antinomian representation. Let’s describe these techniques:

Condensation. It is the fusion of two words or concepts into one, generating a potentially funny mistake. Like when someone says: “quit smoking” and the other answers: “I’m an expert at quitting smoking. “I’ve done it eight times already.”Displacement. When the meaning of something is transferred to something else. This is an example: “Did you know that Independiente (a team) wants the goalkeeper to get married?” “Really? And because?”. “Well, because they want to celebrate something.”Double meaning. When the same word is used with a different meaning. As in this case: “It is better to give than to receive. Sincerely, the boxer.”Use of the same material. Use of the same words or expressions to generate a new meaning. Example: “How are you doing?” the blind man asked the paralyzed man. “As you see,” the paralytic responded to the blind man.Pun or joke for similarity. It is a play on words in which one word refers to another. Example: “Sex with brains is always better than without it.”Representation antinomian. A claim is made that is later denied. As in this case: “Not only did he not believe in ghosts, but he was not even afraid of them.”

The tendency and psychogenesis of the joke

In the joke for Freud there are two types of motivations: the innocent joke, or one with no greater motivation than to show off one’s wit, and the tendentious joke, or one that is motivated by a hostile or obscene impulse. In innocent jokes, pleasure and laughter come exclusively from the humor that is implicit in them. On the other hand, in biased jokes, the pleasure would come from breaking a form of repression.

Tendentious jokes include satirical, ironic and ridiculing statements.. Hostile or obscene content is not always crude, but it is evident. They generate pleasure in those who believe or listen to them because they involve the transgression of a norm regarding certain topics or certain figures.

It is very common for biased jokes to be directed at a figure of power, an ideology, a creed, a people, a race, etc. Many times they are a “politically correct” way of expressing opinions that would not otherwise be accepted..

The joke and the repression

Now, the question must be asked: What is the importance of this mechanism for the psychic life of humans?

The answer is not simple. But, briefly, we can affirm that Jokes constitute, among other things, a way of coping with our anxieties. or overcome traumatic situations.

Likewise, Freud considered that jokes are one of those mechanisms to deal with social, cultural or individual repression that generates displeasure or neurosis.. Thanks to the funny story, part of that tension that would be implicit in repression would be released. Deep down there would be an idea: if it is funny to others it is because it frees one from coercion or inhibition.

Laughter is a means to release emotional tension. It is also a challenge to the repressive. That said, tendentious jokes and laughter fulfill a civilizing role. Instead of directly attacking the other, an ingenious means of language is used to express hostility. Instead of breaking the taboos of sex through perversion, it would be done through “dirty” or obscene jokes.

For all the above, the chi For Freud, this is a means of knowing the repressed desires of a person and a society.. About its taboos and everything that is not talked about openly and is therefore somehow banned from conscious consideration. Hence, these jokes could have everything to do with the unconscious, and could open a way to know in depth the subjective reality of a person and a culture.

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