Laughter - Left Hemisphere

The left hemisphere is quite literal in its interpretations of humor. This means it rarely gets a joke. It is, however, drawn to wordplay. No surprise, as the left hemisphere is where reading, writing, audible speech, and heard speech centers are located. For example: “The bigger the summer vacation, the harder the fall.” Interestingly, the left hemisphere creates a sense of amusement. It is quite happy to laugh at more or less anything when prompted to do so. All things being equal it can laugh mirthfully almost on demand. The right hemisphere is alert to subtleties and nuances. It quickly grasps the meaning by pulling together threads of a joke, including context, assumptions, knowledge of personal bias or prejudice. It “gets” the joke by registering the dislocation in logic that is a hallmark of most formal humor.