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John Cleese on Humor

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CptnChan

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I love comedy, but this speech made me think of Ellsworth Toohey:

 

http://youtu.be/gdWKQ36JkwE

 

 

 

 

Ellsworth Toohey: "Don't set out to raze all shrines — you'll frighten men. Enshrine mediocrity — and the shrines are razed . . . Kill by laughter. Laughter is an instrument of human joy. Learn to use it as a weapon of destruction. Turn it into a sneer. It's simple. Tell them to laugh at virtue. Don't let anything remain sacred in a man's soul — and his soul won't be sacred to him. Kill reverence and you've killed the hero in man" 

Edited by CptnChan
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I don't think he's actually saying one should bring something down. It's more that one can be playful in situations that are usually solemn. He mentioned funeral services. In college, a close friend drowned and I most of the events around that were very solemn, but when the closest of his friends were alone together, we got to joking about him and laughing so much that the tragedy of a life cut short was partly alleviated by the memories of a life well-lived.

Cleese gave a eulogy for Graham -- his colleague from Monty Python. Check it out here:

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