--- title: "1 Joke Thing Quotes By Max Eastman" description: "1 Joke Thing quotes by Max Eastman. Plus more from Max Eastman and more Joke Thing sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be7/max-eastman-21861_comedy_a-joke-is-not-a-thing-but-a-process-a-tr_3020622.jpg" --- > [A joke is not a thing but a process, a trick you play on the listener's mind. You start him off toward a plausible goal, and then by a sudden twist you land him nowhere at all or just where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/a-joke-is-not-a-thing-but-a-process-a-trick-you-play-on-the-listener/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be7/max-eastman-21861_comedy_a-joke-is-not-a-thing-but-a-process-a-tr_3020622.jpg) ## More by Max Eastman > [The defining function of the artist is to cherish consciousness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/the-defining-function-of-the-artist-is-to-cherish-consciousness/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [People who demand neutrality in any situation are usually not neutral but in favor of the status quo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/people-who-demand-neutrality-in-any-situation-are-usually-not-neutral/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [I don't know why it is we are in such a hurry to get up when we fall down. You might think we would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/i-don-t-know-why-it-is-we-are-in-such-a-hurry-to-get-up-when-we-fall/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [There is something self-defeating in the too-conscious pursuit of pleasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/there-is-something-self-defeating-in-the-too-conscious-pursuit-of/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [If one were loyal to one's nation only because it was good and true ... one would not be loyal to any nation but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/if-one-were-loyal-to-one-s-nation-only-because-it-was-good-and-true/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [Laughter is, after speech, the chief thing that holds society together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/laughter-is-after-speech-the-chief-thing-that-holds-society-together/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [Humor is the instinct for taking pain playfully.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/humor-is-the-instinct-for-taking-pain-playfully/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [A smile is the universal welcome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/a-smile-is-the-universal-welcome/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [It is the ability to take a joke, not make one, that proves you have a sense of humor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/it-is-the-ability-to-take-a-joke-not-make-one-that-proves-you-have-a/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [Dogs laugh, but they laugh with their tails. What puts man in a higher state of evolution is that he has got his laugh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/dogs-laugh-but-they-laugh-with-their-tails-what-puts-man-in-a-higher/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [Classic art was the art of necessity: modern romantic art bears the stamp of caprice and chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/classic-art-was-the-art-of-necessity-modern-romantic-art-bears-the/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [ He \[P.G.Wodehouse\] is I believe, the only man living who speaks with equal fluency the American and English languages. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/he-p-g-wodehouse-is-i-believe-the-only-man-living-who-speaks-with/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [Robert Benchley has a style that is weak and lies down frequently to rest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/robert-benchley-has-a-style-that-is-weak-and-lies-down-frequently-to/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [Laughter puts your brain, your central nervous system and your whole being into a state of free play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/laughter-puts-your-brain-your-central-nervous-system-and-your-whole/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) > [Humor is a kind of emotional chaos told about calmly and quietly in retrospect.There is always a laugh in the utterly familiar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-eastman/humor-is-a-kind-of-emotional-chaos-told-about-calmly-and-quietly-in/) [Max Eastman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-eastman/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joke-thing/max-eastman/#itemlist", "name": "1 Joke Thing Quotes By Max Eastman", "numberOfItems": 1, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A joke is not a thing but a process, a trick you play on the listener's mind. 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