A Fool

It is a fool’s prerogative to utter truths that no one else will speak - Neil Gaimen

UNDERSTANDING PEOPLE: THE WISE FOOL

Fooling focuses on recognising the truths about ourselves and other people: their character, predilections, motivations and behaviours.   Foolishly, propositions about individuals are expressed in absolute terms (for example, “Steve is selfish”).  Of course, the truth about any individual admits of more subtlety when subjected to detailed analysis but this is not philosophy or psychotherapy.  Cut and dried propositions are used for two reasons.

Firstly, in improvised theatre, immediate decisions are made because fools act in the Now and are driven by the emotions, not by Thinking and not by calculation and pondering.  Mistakes abound and are celebrated. (For example, when the audience shout a suggestion which the fool mishears, the fool runs with that mishearing, even if it couldn’t possibly be what was intended.  This is the fool’s world after all.)

Secondly, understanding people requires a frankness which in practical terms is undermined by such qualification of propositions.  For example, I accept the following propositions about myself: I am superior;  I am self satisfied; I am kind;  I lack self confidence.  When faced with these positions in the pub, I would go through the normal routine of presenting myself as reasonably modest, but proud enough not to suffer insult.  I would “defend” myself by denial.  Or, I might say that I’m not superior, I’m just interested in philosophy and just because you don’t know what I know doesn’t mean that I don’t respect you. Alternatively, I might defend myself by playing modest: I would insist that I’m not that kind, just normal.  I am required to do this by social norms.  Fooling recognises this as dishonest, but this kind of dishonesty is normal and expected. It is these kinds of dishonesty’s that Fooling opens up and plays with.

Joe Champion, Barrister, NAF 2007 Student