Every Joke Falls in One of 11 Categories, Says Founding Editor of The Onion - Big Think 26/10/20, 16(40

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Every Joke Falls in One of 11

Categories, Says Founding
Editor of The Onion
The Onion founding editor Scott Dikkers says every joke can be
categorized in one of 11 "funny filters."

STEPHEN JOHNSON 24 March, 2017

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Every Joke Falls in One of 11 Categories, Says Founding Editor of The Onion - Big Think 26/10/20, 16(40

Will Ferrell laughs at a ceremony. (Photo: Robyn Beck)

Listen to this article

Scott Dikkers has written and edited countless jokes during

his tenure as the longest-serving editor-in-chief of The
Onion. But in all those years, he’s never come across a joke
that didn’t fall within one of 11 categories – or “funny filters.”

Dikkers was planning a curriculum for a comedy writing

class at Chicago’s Second City when he first put this idea
into words.

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"I had never articulated them before, I just knew

them from doing this for years and years and
years," Dikkers said on The Rob Cressy

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Show podcast. "It was kind of weird to finally

articulate these things that were in my head that
didn’t have words attached to them. They were
just things that you did. And I’m very pleased to
say they’ve been around now for a few years, and
I still — I wouldn’t change a thing. I wouldn’t say,
‘Oh yeah, there’s actually 12,’ or, ‘These two could
be the same, so there’s only 10.’ And I’ve never
encountered a joke or something that was funny
that did not employ one of these 11 literary
devices."

Dikkers' 11 funny filters are listed below, using notes

from Rob Cressy and satirical headlines from The Onion as
examples.

1. Irony – Intended meaning is opposite of literal meaning

Alcoholic Father Disappointed In Pothead Son

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2. Character – Comedic character acting on personality traits

Mom Thinks You'd Enjoy Restaurant She Can't Remember
Name Of Right Now

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3. Reference – Common experiences that audiences can relate

to
Day Chalked Up As Loss By 10:15 A.M.

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4. Shock – Surprising jokes typically involving sex, drugs, gross-

out humor, swearing
Holy Shit, Man Walks On Fucking Moon

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5. Parody – Mimic a familiar character, trope or cliche in an

unfamiliar way

Al Gore Places Infant Son In Rocket To Escape Dying Planet

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6. Hyperbole – Exaggeration to absurd extremes

Magnanimous Boss, King Of Kings, Allows Employees To Watch
World Cup In Office

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7. Wordplay – Puns, rhymes, double entendres, etc.

Fritolaysia Cuts Off Chiplomatic Relations With Snakistan

8. Analogy – Comparing two disparate things

Man Approaches Unfamiliar Shower Knobs Like He Breaking
Wild Stallion

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9. Madcap – Crazy, wacky, silly, nonsensical

Wheelchair Basketball Players Stunned By Thunderous Slam
Dunk

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10. Meta-humor – Jokes about jokes, or about the idea of

comedy
It Sadly Unclear Whether This Article Will Put Lives At Risk

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11. Misplaced Focus – Attention is focused on the wrong thing

Really Fun Toy Banned Because Of 3 Stupid Dead Kids

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Every Joke Falls in One of 11 Categories, Says Founding Editor of The Onion - Big Think 26/10/20, 16(40

--

The filters apply to all jokes, not just headlines from The
Onion. Take this joke from stand-up comedian Anthony
Jeselnik as an example.

“Yesterday I accidentally hit a kid with my car. It wasn’t

serious – nobody saw me.”

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This joke uses misplaced focus. Jeselnik makes you think he's
concerned about the kid. But then he reveals the only reason
the accident wasn't “serious” was because there were no
witnesses. You could also say this joke uses shock — it's
surprising to hear someone talk so callously about hitting a kid
with their car.

(Photo: Justin Sullivan)

In addition to categorizing jokes, Dikkers said the filters can also

help comedians take a rough idea and find the best way to
express it.

First, you start with a premise — say, childbirth is not a

miracle. Then you run that premise through each filter,
producing different kinds of jokes. Maybe you try out
the character filter, and get a joke about how God, an
expert on miracles, is decidedly unimpressed by childbirth.
Scrap that. You try a few more. Finally, you run the premise
through the irony filter and get: Miracle Of Birth Occurs For
83 Billionth Time.

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At least, you might go through all that trouble to write an eight-

word joke if you work for "the most powerful and influential
organization in human history."

--

Check out more comedy writing advice in Scott Dikkers' book

“How To Write Funny: Your Serious, Step-By-Step Blueprint For
Creating Incredibly, Irresistibly, Successfully Hilarious Writing.”

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