A Pragmatic Study on Verbal Humor Used in Mrnigelng YouTube Video

Abstract

Humor is one of the main sources of entertainment in the med ia, especially in the internet. YouTube is a platform in the internet that allows the users to upload any video and share it to others. Mrnigelng or known as Nigel or Uncle Roger is a Malaysian comedian who owns a YouTube video channel. He uses Uncle Roger’s persona to give criticism to western cooks or chefs who try to make Asian dishes humorously. This study aims at examining the verbal humor found in one of the Mrnigelng YouTube videos entitled “Uncle Roger DISGUSTED by this Egg Fried Rice Video (BBC Food)”. By employing Shades (1996) classifications of verbal humor and Attardo (1994) General Theory of Verbal Humor, this study analyzes the types of verbal humor used in the object and how they are generated. The result of this study shows that there are eight types of verbal humor found in the object: Pun, Riddle, Joke, Satire, Farce, Sarcasm, Tall Tale, and Wit. Based on the result, it can be seen that Nigel primarily uses satire to tease an English cook and narrates it in verbal humor to prevent his jokes from being morally unacceptable