Are you a person who can break the ice with a joke? Do you mirror people’s emotions by acting them out? Do you get enjoyment out of not taking life too seriously? When you are in an uncomfortable situation do you tend to crack a joke?
Challenges
masking own emotions to avoid showing your vulnerable side, hiding a hidden agenda behind the mask of making jokes
The Clown archetype is associated with making people laugh by seeing the absurdity of life in an exaggerated way. The Clown is reflecting people’s emotion whether it is sadness, frustration, disappointments of the everyday life by giving them a funny context. The topics communicated by the Clown can be of deeply serious nature or of criticism of society and the Clown enjoys a freedom to convey a message for people to acknowledge some of the absurdities of life.
Traditionally the Clown wears a mask, which allows him to cross the boundary of what is usually accepted within society, since he/she can hide their identity behind it. The mask also keeps the Clown safe from showing real emotions and intimacy. Clowns can appear funny and joyous, hiding their true feelings behind the persona of the Clown.
Comedian
The Comedian archetype is the modern version of a clown and associated with the characteristic of making people laugh about their absurdities in life. The messages communicated through a Comedian humour are deeply serious and often critical of the hypocrisy in an individual or in some area of society. The Comedian is allowed to cross the boundaries of social acceptance, representing what people would like to do or say in their funny and exaggerated way.
In contrast to the traditional Clown the contemporary Comedian doesn’t wear a mask anymore but they can still hide behind their humour using it symbolically as a mask.
