Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X & Boomers Have Very Different Ideas Of What Makes Something Funny
Estrada Anton | ShutterstockMost of us try to be funny, but sometimes it just doesn’t land. As a member of Gen Z, I know how to make somebody my age laugh pretty easily. We know all the same absurdist memes and jokes, after all.
However, what’s funny to somebody my age is generally not funny to a baby boomer or even our Gen X parents, and that's totally OK! Here are a few of the trends I've noticed.
Gen z, millennials, gen x & boomers have different ideas of what makes something funny, like this:
Gen Z loves a good inside joke with lots of layers to it
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There’s something about Gen Z humor that feels like one big inside joke. Maybe it’s the rise of TikTok and Reels, but it seems like we all share the same joke. And the best part is how all these inside jokes seem to layer on top of themselves.
For example, somebody posts a meme, somebody else makes a song of that meme, and a whole different person posts a video to that song, etc. It’s like a domino effect, and what emerges is something that is peak Gen Z humor. We were raised on dank memes, after all.
According to Business Insider, Gen Z finds millennial humor to be cringe, and millennials find gen z humor to be baffling. “Because of the speedy nature of social media today, a joke on the internet quickly snowballs, becoming more intricate and absurd, and relying on everyone being in on the joke. So it's understandable that some people may feel out-of-the-loop when it comes to Gen Z humor,” the author explains.
Millennials find humor in self-deprecation and funny observations about every day life
Yes, Gen Z finds millennials to be cringe, but millennials are actually pretty relatable. They just grew up in a different era of the internet than we did and they found comfort in sharing their struggles in a funny way.
In a conversation online, people of all ages seem to agree that millennials “understand and find humor in how insane the world around us is” and that they “cope by making crazy memes that other generations only cringe at.” It makes sense, really, when you think about it, and it’s similar to some of the other generations.
Some of the most popular TV shows among millennials, such as Gilmore Girls, South Park, and The Office all have the humor that millennials appreciate, even though they were made by Gen Xers for broader audiences.
Gen X loves sarcasm, dry-wit, and a good crack at their midlife crises
Gen X humor is pretty similar to millennials in a few ways. They both love sarcasm and making fun of everyday life. What they don’t have, however, is the social media aspect of it. Not to say that gen Xers don’t go on social media, but since they didn’t grow up with it like Gen Z, the way that they post is different (and there’s nothing wrong with that!).
Their humor makes sense when you think about the TV shows that were popular when Gen X were teens and young adults: Seinfeld, Friends, and Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. They might find cat videos way funnier than Gen Z does, and catch phrases like “Don’t talk to me before my coffee" seem to be the most relatable, especially on the side of a Gen Xers mug.
Baby boomers are laughing over everyday struggles, too, but also puns and 'dad jokes'
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Rachel Wayne, writer at Medium, made a guide to understanding “Boomer Humor.” Wayne explained that there are some common themes to boomer humor. They include marriage struggles, how younger generations are terrible, and the fact that today’s society is full of weird people.
Although this isn’t always the case, there is something to make of these trends. Every boomer comic strip we see online says a lot about what they care about. It seems like they like to make fun of how absurd the world has become, how far it has strayed from their traditional guidelines, and how aging is hard.
Baby boomers also seem to love a good pun, a play on words and your classic corny dad jokes. And who could ever be mad about your grandma and the "It's wine o'clock!" sign in her kitchen?
Sophie Bagheri is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and theatre who covers lifestyle topics.
