The Impact of Humor in Society: The Book of Mormon and Mormonism

In this paper, we will see how humor, especially black humor, influences some segments of our society; we will be reading about the history of humor and discussing its three main theories: the Superiority Theory, the Relief Theory and the Incongruity Theory. These theories shaped the way in which we now see and perceive humor, e.g. as something that we enjoy, because it makes us both relax (Relief Theory), and laugh, because in 99% of the cases the joke starts in a way and then takes an unexpected turn that results in us laughing (Incongruity Theory). We also talk about what black humor is, if it is still inappropriate to use in a public setting and if people find it unsettling to hear jokes that contain black humor in them. We then discuss another aspect of black humor, that is: humor on religion. We are all aware that joking and religion are two words that do not often mix, and because of that, it was particularly interesting to see that even though we may think that those words do not often mix, they have been for the longest of time. We have examples in the Greek gods and in mythology; we have creatures that are called tricksters that take pleasures in laughing and playing jokes at each other. To further explore this topic, in the third section you will find an interview made to some Mormon friends about the Broadway musical The Book of Mormon. This musical is based on Mormon teachings and use these teachings to make fun of the Church itself. The questions that I asked mainly focus on the aspect of “being offended”, as it is fascinating to see how a close community like the Mormon one, can react to a musical that has the sole purpose of making people laugh by making light of their beliefs