I dreamt that I enrolled in a psychology class but the professor spent the first lecture doing nothing but clicking through a slideshow of photos of beautiful landscapes with C-3PO edited into them, then explaining that adding C-3PO to otherwise serious situations ruined humans’ ability to take them seriously. When we all started laughing at what a pointless lecture this was, she glared at us and announced that our laughter had proved her point.
Then she assigned us our homework - go to funerals and show people sad pictures of the deceased with C-3PO photoshopped in. If they laughed, it meant their ability to feel humor was stronger than their ability to feel grief.
I thought, ‘oh my god my professor is a robot with absolutely no idea how human psychology works’ so I decided to stay in the class and help her figure it out by writing explanations in my essays that would offer nuance and context.
“And now class, I want you to examine the following image.”
“Beautiful, isn’t it? This shot of the Bolivian salt flats is absolutely breathtaking and meets all human standards of ‘beauty’. The warm hues of the clouds contrast pleasantly with the deep azure of the sky, and the perfect mirroring in the water suggests an almost mystical purity. The human brain is nearly overcome with wonder at the natural optical illusion. However, I have photoshopped C-3PO into the image, replacing the boat in the original photo. You all laugh! It is no longer a beautiful photo, but a comical one, because no one respects C-3PO. You see him as a fool, and thus the picture becomes comical! Human brains prioritize humor to the exclusion of all else. Now, I want you all to go out and absolutely ruin some funerals tomorrow.”
