Novels and Systems

In this week's first class lecture I noted a few connections between
the topics of systems and novel. The two attachments to systems are
that of incongruity and ambiguity. It is often thought that comedy is
produced by these two themes. More simply put, together, they create
the element of surprise, or novel. To further understand my ideas,
certain themes need to be defined. 'Wit's Weapons' notes that when
something is novel, it is often new or surprising. This idea helps
fulfill the quest for humor. Furthermore, concepts of novel are used
in systems. A system is a set of beliefs or ideas. An intended system
is different for every person. This is because we all have separate
beliefs, we were all raised differently, and most importantly, we all
think different things are funny.
An application to the original theory is that of a thriller novel or
movie. Although this theory is generally used to define a genre of
comedy, it can be concluded that the basic element of novel can be
described by other medias. In a bad scary movie, the audience is able
to predict the key action intended to surprise. This attempt at novel
fails, and thus the movie itself will most likely blunder. In a good
thriller, the director successfully surprises its audience. For
example, in the movie, "No Country for Old Men," the antagonist will
most likely attempt to surprise the protagonist. Excuse me if I forget
their names, but the idea still remains. The director is trying to
create the element of surprise. If he is successful in his vision, the
audience will most likely be stunned and surprised. A stunned and
surprised audience will yield better reviews, and thus a popular
movie. "No Country for Old Men" was successful in this conquest of
thrills and is generally considered a successful movie. Back to how
this relates to humor. The reader or viewer's prediction can be
further assessed in the early pages of 'Wit's Weapons'. It is said
that our prediction acts as the "expectation system" and the author's
depiction is the "real system." This system is intended to provoke the
laughs from an audience. If the expectation the reader has ends up
being true, then the author failed in his attempt at humor. The
transition between the two systems is where the humor lies.
The "real system" can be further broken down into incongruity and
ambiguity. I could further explore these differences, but essentially
they are both intended to create an element of surprise. For this
reason, I will streamline this narrative and focus on the half of
ambiguity.
One way an author can attract laughs is an attack on the systems. In
the excerpt from What's So Funny, humorists often reveal a specific
system to the reader. This system might spark the moral or obvious
systems of a reader. Then, the author suddenly shows the reader an
element from another system. This is where the ambiguity lies. The
authors' usage of this theory is what attracts laughter. It also
depends on many other variables: how well the reader knows the
systems, or if the system change is too ambiguous or not ambiguous
enough the reader will most likely become confused. Confusion is
usually not a recipe for laughter. It is important for the author to
find this area of ambiguity in order to entertain. There are many
other applications of how ambiguity can be used and even more
concerning incongruity that I intend to touch upon in my next
publication