By Denise H. Horton

Laughter may be the best medicine, but it comes at the expense of others, according to a new book by Charles Gruner, a speech communication professor.

The Game of Humor examines jokes, word play and other forms of humor within the context of competition. "When a game is close, there's an outpouring of emotion," Gruner explains. "In humor, the loser is the person that the joke's on. If a punch line comes quickly and suddenly, then there's lots of emotion, similar to what happens in a close sports contest."

Gruner's book is based on more than 40 years of research and builds on Thomas Hobbes' superiority theory of humor, which claims that humor arises from chronicling the mischances, infirmities and indecencies of others. Gruner draws on a broad spectrum of humor to demonstrate that even simple word play, such as puns, has a competitive element.

"For example," he says, "one fellow says, 'This coffee tastes like mud.' The next says, 'Well, it was ground yesterday.' The puns continue--'Well, this isn't going to perk me up any'--with each person trying to top the one before. It's a contest of superiority--who can keep the puns coming or who can make the worst pun."

Gruner recognizes that many people--including others who study humor--hate to think that all humor has a competitive bent to it.

"We want to think of lots of humor as very warm and fuzzy," he says. "But if you take the contest nature out of a joke, then it's usually not very funny."

Gruner even uses the superiority theory to explain why humor can help people facing illness.

"Jokes that show doctors, hospitals and nurses in a foolish light make the patients feel like winners," he says. "If you're laughing, you're feeling on top."

When watching slapstick comedy, such as Laurel and Hardy or the Three Stooges, the audience laughs because we identify with the person throwing the pie, not the one being hit, according to Gruner.

"When you watch a football game and your team wins, you feel great," he says. "Now, you didn't have anything to do with the team winning, but emotionally you feel like you did."

The Game of Humor is scheduled to be released later this spring by Transaction Publishers at Rutgers University.