Rodney you plonker

Here is a question I have been asking Americans for the last 5 years.

What exactly is a dry sense of humour???????

If I had a Nickel for every time an American person told me "you English have a dry sense of humour", and if I had a Dime for every blank look I've had when I asked them "what exactly does that mean", I could buy myself lots of shiny things.

I think it is just something Americans grow up believing without ever questioning it, it's true! the next time someone states that you have a dry sense of humour, ask them what they mean, you will soon see they have no idea. I have asked the dumbest of rednecks with a mullet to the smartest Engineers I know and none of them can tell me what they mean.

I know there is a lot more irony in our humour, is that what they are referring to??

paddingtongreen

Yout title might make people reluctant to answer, but I'll risk being called one.

My understanding is that much of our humour is disguised as a straight story, and often, the punchline gets no additional emphasis, or is even implied rather than stated. The shaggy dog stories are typical examples of dry humour. Do you remember the purina diet, that was dry:

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showt...ht=purina+diet

In American humour, you are generally warned in advance that a joke is in the works.

peterbainham

Straight-faced, deadpan, subtle, mildly sarcastic/ironic. See Jack Dee.

Angry White Pyjamas

Well I see it as we dont need to be told when to laugh and when to get offended. We know when something is funny without it being explained. Mostly.

Rodney you plonker

Do you think it has anything to do with the subject matter. We tend to make jokes about bad things happenning, even when Lady Diana took a dive and the whole country was in mourning, there were still people making jokes. I don't think that would happen in the USA.

How many Steve Irwin jokes have you heard out here? I bet they are flying round the UK.

Angry White Pyjamas

Could be. We just make jokes out of anything really...especially ourselves. It's definitely part of being British I guess. I can't imagine many Americans making themselves the butt of a joke deliberately.

Tbag

Jack Dee funny bugger...good show last night...
British/dry humour for me is sarcasm and poking fun at yourself............

gardnma

Yanks expect the joke to be pretty straightforward. Generally, American humour doesnt take much to understand (except Carlin, for example)
Ours is implied, subtle, double meaning - all that jazz.
Try telling a joke to a kraut, you will give up and join a monastry.

willmore

A canadian perspective. The english have a very down to earth sarcastic with a play on words and a touch of irony. Its not so much what you say, but how you say it. A perfect example is fawlty towers.....personally I love it...once I get use to it.....

Canadians are not known for their sarcasm so it takes awhile for someone to catch on......it will sometimes take me days before I "get" jack's jokes....(no matter how bad they may be).

gardnma

Is it warm enough for sarcasm?

willmore

You see there you go again!

gardnma

This may sound like a really ignorant question but I haven't met too many of you lot.
Are Canadians aware of the "Lumberjack Song". Do they hate it?

willmore

Gosh I dont really know - Ill check it out and tell you later. Ive never heard it I dont think, but it cant be any worse than Bud the Spud by stompin tom connors!

willmore

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...23663768138601

We may not be good at sarcasm, but we do have a good sense of humour.

PMSL - very funny!

gardnma

Yeah thats it.