Yawp Mag Issue 29 The Five Humour Styles | Page 10

Aggressive
Humour
Dr Jay Brinker

Aggressive humour is one of the maladap- names in 1969.
tive humour styles proposed by Rod Martin
The interesting part of this is that it began
and his colleagues.
as a way to deal with hecklers, people that
Again, this humour style was conceptual- we would generally agree are the bane of a
ised from the point of view of the person us- comedian’s life. The most adept comedians
ing it and is defined as the tendency to use learn very quickly how to shut down a heckhumor to disparage, put down, or manipu- ler and move on with their set.
late others, the use of ridicule or offensive
humor, and the compulsive expression of Aggressive humour is a very effective way
of stopping a behaviour or putting an end to
humor even when inappropriate.
an argument. I once witnessed a married
When people think of aggressive humour, couple having a strange argument about the
they likely think of insult comics. These relative trials of each gender. The husband
comedians make a living out of clever put- suggested it was more difficult to grow old
downs and barbed wit.
as a man because men lose their hair. The
wife’s retort quickly brought an end to the
One website lists Don Rickles as the best discussion “You’re not losing your hair, it’s
insult comic of all time and suggests that sliding down your back.”
he became an insult comic as a result of
his deft retorts and counter attacks against One of the points to consider when talking
hecklers in the crowd. When you search about aggressive humour is the intent befor Don Rickles stand-up on the internet, hind it. When Don Rickles teases Dean
you find an old recording from 1969 which Martin about never having liked him, the auintroduces him as the Sultan of Insult, the dience does not get the sense that it is true,
Merchant of Venom and the Pussy Cat with nor that it is intended with malice.
Claws. He then proceeds to insult all of the
big names in the audience….well the big The wife in the above exampl HX^H]