What makes humor "American"?

Defining one culture’s type of humor is best done in contrast with other cultures, in order  to see the similarities and differences in what each group finds funny. Of course, individuals in different nations vary from one another in regards to their personal taste. Therefore, it can be difficult to analyze what makes a certain brand of humor, for example British, as opposed to American or Canadian... It can be argued that humor varies largely on a person to person basis. Whether or not somebody will find something funny depends on a number of aspects, including: culture, maturity level, education, geographic location, and the context of the humor.

An individual in a certain culture will be conditioned, however, to find certain things funny and certain things not funny. This happens through prolonged media exposure, and a sense of humor that is culturally relevant can greatly influence how an individual is perceived socially-- so this could also have an effect on what an individual finds humorous. Of course, some people within a culture will choose to venture into new territories in comedy. They may seek out comedy and other media which is not from their culture, specifically because they personally find it funny. There may be very popular media within their own culture that they do not respond to positively, yet everyone around them does. 

As a personal example, stand-up comedian Daniel Tosh (from the show Tosh.0) is very widely famous across the United States. Most people I know find him to be funny, and his show is constantly on television, illustrating this point. However, I fail to see the humor in any of his stand-up routines, and I think his show is obnoxious. It is not typically “American” of me to think of Daniel Tosh as un-funny, but that doesn’t dictate where I find humor. 

American humor has the tendency to be direct, whereas British humor is much more subtle and less likely to "hit you over the head" with a joke, so to speak. In some situations, I genuinely prefer British humor to American, though most of the comedy I watch tends to be American.

Daniel Tosh, of Tosh.0

Culture is one of the things that can make humor more specific. A group of people, typically in the same geographic location, have a collective culture which is easy for them to relate to. One of the outlets of the aspects of culture found in these groups is through humor. 

There are many themes that can be found in specifically American humor. Much of this humor is represented through stand-up--and through a specific type of individual, which the nation is collectively amused by. The character known as the “Yankee”, who is quite juvenile, sly and ingenious, who plays elaborate practical jokes, and is often uneducated, could be looked at as the voice of American comedy. 

The video below is a  stand-up comedian, Kyle Kinane, who had recently a special on comedy central. He is a good example of this sort of humor. As a thirty-five year old man, his jokes revolve around the silly things he does when he drinks, living alone, and in general, having a passive attitude about his life. 

This specific voice of comedy is very popular in American stand-up; Dave Chapelle, Louis C.K., and Kevin Hart are all good examples. Their humor tends to be mostly observational, finding the ludicrous in average, every day situations.

Aside from the somewhat "immature" voice, one thing these comedians all have in common are that they take otherwise serious situations (largely political or culture) and make jokes about them. The humor could be perceived as offensive to some who are not used to such brutally honest and up-front comedy, but this kind of humor is extremely well received by American audiences.
An example of this which is well known worldwide, is South Park, a show written by Matt Stone and Trey Parker, which famously parodies situations in the media in an especially harsh and crude way. They have the reputation of taking jokes too far, making light of very sensitive issues
For example, in one episode of South Park about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, they create a scenario where the conflict is resolved at a Van Halen concert- and they use footage of Israelis and Palestinians rioting to the tune of Van Halen.

This conflict, which began in the mid-twentieth century and has not yet been resolved, is a serious matter that South Park found humor in making light of--yet it would likely be extremely offensive to people in the Middle East.

In fact, one of the more popular themes in the United States when it comes to comedy is making jokes that aren't politically correct, and can often translate as entirely offensive. American humor tends to be crude and sometimes brutal. The “roast” phenomenon is very popular in the United States. A roast is an event which an individual is selected to be subject to a host of comedic insults geared towards him or her by other comedians. The idea of the roast is that the individual will be able to take the jokes aimed at them in good humor, and they will later be able to rebut and “roast” the guests in return. 

Comedy Central Roast of James Franco

Slapstick and physical comedy are very characteristic of American comedy. The humor in the United States is very rarely understated (this is one of the major differences between American and British comedy.)
America is a very large, very diverse nation--and in it there are many places from which to draw humor. Many groups contribute and form their own "brand" of American humor. During the 20th century, there was an influx of Jewish comedians, namely: The Three Stooges, The Marx Brothers, Woody Allen, Lenny Bruce... and there still continue to be many today, including John Stewart, Seth Rogen, Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. A large portion of American humor tends to be Jewish.
African American comedians came to the forefront in the later part of the 20th century. Comedians like Bill Cosby and Eddie Murphy were popular in the 80's and 90's, and today there are still many popular black comedians. They offer a different voice than the white comedians in the United States, but it is still very much a part of the US culture.

Eddie Murphy

The American According to the Rest of the World

National identity is an interesting concept, because it needs to be viewed from multiple lenses. For every nation there are two perspectives: how they view themselves and how outsiders view them. Stereotypes have the tendency to be internalized by groups and they manifest themselves through media and other creative expressions. These notions are created in an endless loop- and therefore they are often impossible to break free of. Stereotypes influence self-concept, which then influences media, which reinforces previous stereotypes.  

Generalizations begin to become more apparent when a person travels outside of their nation and acts as a representative for their country. Having been an American abroad, I have come across a spectrum of opinions and preconceived notions about what I am like (or supposed to be like) as an American. I had never considered the stigma that follows that specific nationality until I was asked personal questions upon meeting Europeans (for example, whether I owned a gun) that I had never even considered to be associated with my identity.

My Super Sweet 16

Americans are largely thought to be materialists, obsessed with obtaining capital. Television shows such as "My Super Sweet 16", which  showcases fifteen year olds throwing extravagant birthday parties for themselves with their parent's money (often demanding things like Range Rovers and a thirty foot cake which Beyonce jumps out of) reinforces this stereotype to the rest of the world. 

Interestingly, upon searching "My Super Sweet 16" on Google, one of the first articles I found was an opinion piece entitled 'My Super Sweet 16' and Everything That's Wrong With America, which just goes to show how much media truly influences the perceptions of a nation. Of course all Americans aren't like this. The purpose of the show is essentially to laugh at the spoiled youths that are being followed around while they whine about not having enough diamonds in their tiaras. However, because this is the image American media is putting forward in the world, it is easy to use it to generalize the entirety of American people.

Another stereotype which is often associated with Americans is ignorance and/or lack of education. This is a stereotype which is reinforced possibly the most by the media. Specifically, news sources which are given the freedom to stretch the truth tend to broadcast groups of people which are not completely representative of the American population. 

The manifestation of these stereotypes can be observed in popular American cartoons, such as Family Guy, The Simpsons and American Dad! The premise of these shows are essentially that the central character (typically the father/husband figure) is not very intelligent. The central characters in these shows also often tend to be overweight, which is another stereotype that is associated with Americans. 

Family Guy


The central character of American Dad!, Stan Smith, holds very stereotypical "American" ideals. Often, America is associated with conservative view points, and American Dad! parodies this overly conservative stereotype through Stan Smith. In the show, his character is exaggerated in many of the stereotypes that are given to Americans, he is comically macho and is overly patriotic. 

"Stan Smith: Son, if you ever get captured by any terrorists in the neighborhood and end up on al-Jazeera, just blink you location in Morse code. I'll have a bomb dropped on your location immediately. 
Steve Smith: But, Dad, then I'd get killed too. 
Stan Smith: Ah, come on son, there are plenty of kids to play with in heaven. Your cousin Billy. That little girl from Poltergeist..." (IMDb, 2005.)

Over-emphasized patriotism is attributed to American culture often. One of the interesting things about shows such as American Dad! is that they are written by American writers. Often, American humor pokes fun at itself and at others. However, self deprecating humor is not the most characteristic of what is popular in the United States in comparison to other nations (such as England.) 

American comedy does have a knack for making light of dark situations. Comedians often take world issues into account, typically quite serious ones, and are able to make jokes about them which may come off as offensive. 

"Parody" news is another big phenomenon in the United States in terms of comedy. With websites, such as The Onion, "America's Finest News Source", and television shows such as The Colbert Report and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, parody news has become widespread and well-known throughout the country. Unlike The Onion, these shows provide actual news stories with sarcastic input (yet, the facts are still there.) Another purpose for shows like this is to poke fun at actual newscasts across the United States. 

Famously, American broadcasted news has the tendency to be incredibly inaccurate... Comically so. It is either targeted at left wing audiences or right wing audiences, and it is almost impossible to find non-biased news. It is almost ironic that a newscast that strives to be sarcastic in nature is actually more un-biased and truthful than the actual newscasts across the United States.

Much of recent American humor is political. Even in shows such as Family Guy and South Park, one can find relevant political commentary--albeit sometimes offensive and rude.