Humor is a human quality that is often overlooked. From children’s knock knock jokes to renowned comedians, evoking laughter in others has always been regarded as a desirable, though not intellectual, trait. Few understand the calculated quality behind these quips, though, categorizing humor as superficial. However, humor is one of the greatest forms of intelligence.
Humor is often stereotyped. The trait is associated with charisma, lightheartedness and superficial interaction. Many think that funny or fun people are not smart or capable of being serious.
But generally, popular kids in high school share a common thread of being fun to be around and able to carry on conversations with humor and jest. These individuals are rarely considered intelligent, though, portrayed as not caring for school and having bad grades. From Cher in “Clueless” and Elle in “Legally Blonde” to the entire “Breakfast Club,” pop culture perpetuates this stereotype.
Perhaps society deems funny people as less intelligent because their silliness is what makes them so funny. Similar to the class clown archetype, a person’s airhead behavior, whether it be falling off chairs or failing to answer elementary math questions, evokes laughter in others.
Several TV characters follow this trope. The classic Nickelodeon’s children show, “Victorious,” features Ariana Grande as the main character Cat, the bubbly and dull-witted redheaded girly-girl that everyone’s always howling at because of her foolish commentary.
Likewise, Karen in “Mean Girls” delivers some of the most iconic comedic lines of the movie, from spelling “orange” wrong to genuinely wondering how Cady could be from Africa since she’s white. In “The Hangover,” the character Alan stands out as the dumb one, but he delivers some of the sharpest lines in the film. For example the short and simple, “I’m a stay at home son.”
This classic representation of humor is exactly what drives most people to think humor cannot be associated with intelligence. The truth is humans find stupidity thrilling. A good laugh may come from poking fun at other people or at yourself. But humor can also be dangerous if taken too far. The best kind of comedians are those who can be funny without being mean. Comedian Jo Koy faced backlash after the 2024 Golden Globes for his sexist poke at the “Barbie” movie, offending the actors and creators of the film. Koy said: “‘Oppenheimer’ is based on a 721-page Pulitzer Prize-winning book about the Manhattan Project, and ‘Barbie’ is on a plastic doll with big boobies.”
Being a comedian is hard because you have to time the joke just right so it’s relevant while avoiding being offensive. A perfect example of this was the 2025 Golden Globes host Nikki Glaser, whose witty commentary this year displayed a true knowledge of all the actors, nominees and their movies.
“The jokes are hard hitting, but I’m not out for blood,” Glaser said in an interview on the red carpet with Entertainment Tonight. “You won’t be crying later about my jokes. Don’t be cruel; be a cool person who can laugh at yourself. I’m not throwing any punches, I just don’t wanna ruin anyone’s evening. If I make a joke about you, I promise it’s not to take you down or point out something about yourself that no one else knows.”
The audience was incredibly engaged in Glaser’s performance. For example her leading comment, “I’m scared, Ariana hold my finger?” was a reference to Ariana Grande holding her fellow “Wicked” cast member Cythia Erebo’s fingernail in an interview. Not only was the joke received positively from Grande and others, Grande engaged with Glaser, mimicking holding her finger.
Her next joke is one of my and the BBC’s personal favorites, “Zendaya, you were incredible in Dune. I woke up for all of your scenes,” Glaser proved her ability to subtly mock the movie, while also complementing the actress.
The best humor requires knowledge and awareness. The almost psychic ability to be able to “read the room” and anticipate how an audience will receive a line requires a deep social emotional intelligence most take a lifetime to acquire.
The best comics must understand perfect timing and human patterns. A funny person requires a wide knowledge of current events and pop culture and the wisdom to use this information wisely and in a timely manner. Next time you find yourself ridiculing your friendgroups jokster for their lack of academic achievement, remember that humor can be one of the greatest forms of intelligence.