Canadian Humour Essay Sample

The essay is based on a literature review and analysis of a story titled: "The burden and the glory of being Dad," by Will Ferguson, published in 2010. Will Ferguson is a Canadian writer and novelist best known for his humorous observations on Canadian history and culture, and he also won 2010, Stephen Leacock Medal, for Humour, and his travel memoir titled; Beyond "Belfast: A 560-Mile Walk Across Northern Ireland on Sore Feet".

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The purpose of this literature review analyzes on various aspects of literature that writers used in research works. The elements, in this case, the author, Will Ferguson, uses humor to accomplish his task of delivering the message to the intended readers.

Reaction and Analysis

The writer used humor to entertaining and attract the attention of the readers. As the readers view the writer's jokes as being funny, the words carry out their other tasks secretly, and in the process the message delivered. The writer has effectively used humor in his literary work to get his point across by conveying attitude for purposes of addressing the theme.

Types of Comedy

The writer has used different types of comedy in the story to achieve his task. For instance, the writer used banter, a form of a funny conversation where individuals talk to one another in a friendly and humorous way (Cambridge UP, 2019). The banter revealed when the writes asked Alex what was wrong with when he became quite, Alex on replying said asked that, "How come, in storybooks, ducks, and little boys are friends, but whenever they go to the park and tries to say hi to the ducks, they just run away?" The father answered by saying, "Well, I think the ducks in the park are a little shy is all. How about some ice cream?"

The writer has also employed Anecdote as a type of comedy in his work. According to Cambridge University Press, 2019, anecdote is a form of a short and amusing story about an event, about something someone has done. The writer points out that when Alex was four years of age, he could sometimes be "rummaging through leaves, searching for lost treasure. Gold coins, maybe. Or rubies," that had just raked hoping maybe he could find some.

The write uses parody, a type of comedy of copying the style of someone or something humorously in literature work. As the writer recalls in his earliest childhood memories, there were approximately 98,000 books in the series. The books have similar "manly titles like Conan the Destroyer, Conan the Usurper, Conan the Ambidextrous and so on," the message of these books in that, any place at any time, a demonic creature is culpable of leaping out of the darkness and pull a entrails out through a spleen. His brother, Ian inflicted a wholly and accidental trauma in him, concerning these books. So, the writer uses parody when he mentioned the word like Conan and entrails to his son. "So, when my son was old enough to ask for regular bedtime stories, there were two conditions I insisted upon: No Conan and no entrails."

Another type of comedy used by Ferguson in this story is Satire whereby when Alex was young at age 3, his father keeps telling him a story of a little boy and a duck who became friends and they could visit each other and when the boy felt sick the duck attended him and cheered him up. The ironic part of the story revealed when Alex ask his father why when they go to a park to say hi to the ducks, ducks run away but, in the storybooks, the duck and a little boy are friends. This story being ridiculing and has mocking weaknesses that create humor.

Style of humor

The writer, Ferguson has employed Affiliative humor as a type of humour in writing about the story (Ronald 2015), as the author's tone is informal evidently when the writer mentioned that he had three stalwart older brothers but "their tastes in literature ranged from the gruesome to the gory, much of it of the blood-splattering sword-and-sorcery variety." The write evidently informal, when Alex asked why in storybooks, the ducks and little boys are friends but contrary to when the Alex goes to the park and try to say hi the ducks always run away, then he casually answered by saying that "Well, I think the ducks in the park are a little shy is all. How about some ice cream?"

Besides, the author informally recalls that when he took Alex to the Calgary Stampede when Alex was age 5, the boy was casually "wearing a hat with a whistle on it." the write casually add that he wanted his son to see the bull riders and chuckwagon races; true the man events. I had not thought of the calf-roping. "By the time the second calf had been yanked off its feet and tied down, Alex was in tears," screaming loud "Make them stop," This further elaborate on the informal tone the write used in his work.

The tone of the author

The informal tone used by the writer does not fully contribute to the overall style of the humor as the author has based the story around his family members, ranging from his father, brothers and finally his son.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the writer of "The burden and the glory of being Dad," used various aspects and forms of literary works. The writer has used humor in this literary work to attract the attention of the readers, and get his point across by conveying attitude for purposes of addressing the theme. There is the use of banter to express a friendly and humorous story as well as the use of Anecdote a type of comedy in his work. The writer also the use of parody and satire in the story which tend to the story so amusing.

Affiliative humor as a type of humor employed in writing the story with the author's tone being informal and casual in the entire story. The informal tone used by the writer does not fully contribute to the overall style of the humor as the author has based the story around his family members that make the tale affiliative.

Works Cited

Cambridge Dictionary. Cambridge University Press, 2019. Accessed 19 February 2019

Column, Guest. "7 Reasons Writers of Serious Novels Should Use Humor in Their Fiction," Writer's Digest, 14 November 2016, https://www.writersdigest.com/online-editor/7-reasons-writers-serious-novels-use-humor-fiction. Accessed 19 February 2019

Ferguson, Will. "The burden and the glory of fatherhood."Globe & Mail [Torornto, Canada], 19 June 2010, p. A21. Infotrac Newsstand.https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/the-burden-and-the-glory-of-fatherhood/article1368010/ Accessed 19 February 2019

Riggio, R. E. "The 4 Styles of Humor." What do you find funny (2015)?15 Apr 2015,https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/cutting-edge-leadership/201504/the-4-styles-humor. Accessed 19 February 2019