But if it requires a robust humorist to perceive the absurdity of
his own nation, what intensity of humour is required for a man to
see the absurdity of himself! To acquiesce in appearing ridiculous
is the height of philosophy. We are glad enough to amuse other
people intentionally, but how many men does one know who do not
resent amusing other people unintentionally? Yet if one were a true
philanthropist, how delighted we ought to be to afford to others a
constant feast of innocent and joyful contemplation.
But the fact which emerges from all these considerations is the
fact that we do not give humour its place of due dignity in the
moral and emotional scale. The truth is that we in England have
fallen into a certain groove of humour of late, the humour of
paradox. The formula which lies at the base of our present output
of humour is the formula, "Whatever is, is wrong." The method has
been over-organised, and the result is that humour can be
manufactured in unlimited quantities. The type of such humour is
the saying of the humorist that he went about the world with one
dread constantly hanging over him--"the dread of not being
misunderstood.
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