Rhetorical devices

Humor

Arthur C. Brooks relies on humor in the article “The Link Between Happiness and a Sense of Humor”. Although many readers might expect a text about humor to be funny, Brooks explores the topic mostly in a scientific manner. However, he engages readers from the beginning of the article, when he opens with a joke: “When I die, I want to go peacefully in my sleep, like my grandfather. Not screaming in terror, like the passengers on his bus” (ll. 1-2). Then, he attracts readers’ attention when he explains the patterns that their brains have followed upon reading the joke (ll. 3-6). 

Brooks also uses humor against himself when he assumes that readers are not amused by his scientific explanations: “I realize that after that analysis, you’re probably not laughing anymore (…) Fair enough” (ll. 7-9)....