The Whimsical Nature of the Jester
Introduction
The jester is a silly and easygoing character who doesn’t take things seriously and will do anything to get a laugh. The jester is a deceivingly simple character, they’re a person who is not afraid to be perceived as an idiot and to be a laughing stock. They carry an air of confidence that even rivals the royal. This is because the Jester knows what they are, and they are not persuaded or moved by the opinions of others, they are careless to how others perceive them. This can be for good and for bad, some people use the archetypical characteristics as a shield to hide their true self behind, they wear the smiling face as a mask to disguise themselves and to be accepted and loved, while others more genuinely embrace the craziness and strangeness of this cosmic fool.
Today we’re diving deeper into the court of the crimson-smiled and motley-wearing jester. Put on your silly hat and prepare to have some whimsical fun. We will be polishing our emotional shields and practising our social guise. Let’s begin by doing our merry jig and look a little closer at what makes up the archetype of the Jester.
The Archetype of the Jester
The Jester also known as the Joker and the Fool was a member of the household of a nobleman or monarch whose purpose was to entertain the household and guests during royal court. Carl Jung identified the Jester as the archetype of the human psyche relating to enjoyment and pleasure. Personified as the class clown, the comedian of the friend group and the comic relief support character in a fictional narrative - the jester comes in many shapes and forms but the things they have in common is their way of communication. Using humour as a tool of communication and as a way to cope they use jokes to connect and distance themselves from others.
Jung identifies the Jester as the part of us that makes jokes and engages in play. The part of us that despises boredom and worries about boring others. It’s the part of us that embraces joy and seeks to entertain not only ourselves but the people around us as well. It’s a very social aspect and one that engages seriously in this social play. To each archetype, there’s a holistic and more wholesome side and its counterpart in the form of a shadow. For now, we’ll talk about the positives of the Jester and dive deeper into its shadow later.
The Jester is a character who is confident in themselves because they know their true self. This confidence allows them to see through the charades of others and being well-versed in social blending, can tell immediately when somebody is playing the social game. Being a professional at acting, the archetype knows the real intentions behind the actions of others. They know the mask they wear, and they know the silly outfit and how others perceive them, yet this doesn’t bother the fool. Behind that charade of whimsical fun and silliness, there’s a sharp wit and intelligence a lot of people are unaware of. The Jester isn’t a fool because of their nature or out of necessity but by deliberate choice. While often viewed as a supporting character the Jester can pull some hidden strings and not only motivate the people around them but also manipulate their surroundings to their advantage.
The court jester while mocked and made fun of really is in a position of power and is often better off than a lot of other people in the royal household. There’s a manipulation of their reality - and in many ways, artists and creatives embody the archetype of the Jester. Both creatively in playfulness but also socially in the attitudes towards this kind of artistic playfulness.
The Foolish & Playful Side of Art
Art is inherently linked to emotions and feelings - both good and bad. The Jester helps us deal with those and thus is an archetype closely related to the artistic practice. Art can be approached with a joyful frivolous expression, embracing the playful nature and childlike naivety of creativity but it can also be used as a way to distance oneself and escape from feeling and taking accountability for those emotions. While the Jester expresses this part more personally or perhaps socially it can also be done artistically. Another thing that links the artist and the fool is the social status and public perception.
Generally, we view artists as oddballs and eccentrics, people we tolerate and appreciate for their qualities but perhaps not relate to entirely. Artists may seem alien or at odds with society and reality at large and it gives them this Jester-like quality. Where society values their work and entertainment, but wouldn’t put them on the throne except for a gag, or take them too seriously. To take seriously what these foolish artists express and say it takes another fool to understand, and as mentioned earlier archetypically the Jester can see through that. It is our inner Jester that understands and values art, entertainment and playfulness, but other aspects of our psyche keep him in check. From that arises this idea that we can’t be artists, and be playful because it’s not real work. The occupation of court jester is reserved for the mentally unstable, the insane and the stupid. It’s for people who can’t do anything, who lack the intelligence and work ethic needed to do other work around the royal household. We value people who make us laugh or entertain us but do we value it enough to feed and house them? It’s money for nothing and if we have to sweat and break our backs so should they.
Curiously though we let them, and these idiots are given a fool’s immunity. We allow their eccentric traits and quirks and we allow them to exist in our reality, offering us some relief and respite from the hardships of reality. After all, there is this part of us that are like them - that want to escape and just be playful, and not have to deal with the boring parts. There’s also an envy - that deep down we wish we had the courage they do. That if only we were a little braver we would too jig around the court and shout obscenities. But our tomfoolery is reserved for a select few and only behind closed doors. That’s when the inner jester comes out.
Fool’s Immunity
There’s a certain degree of immunity offered to the Jester. It’s largely because we don’t take them particularly seriously, and while we often like to think of social hierarchies as a ladder with ascending steps and a clear linear structure, the Jester breaks that hierarchy albeit spontaneously and briefly. In the royal court, no one is allowed to insult or question the king - he’s after all at the top of the food chain. No one except for the Jester - who is free to mock, ridicule and question even the King. Why? Because the king isn’t threatened by a fool - his social position isn’t affected by the jests and quips of an idiot. If anything he finds it refreshing and he respects the fool for this reason, and his internal fool is grateful to be entertained and to have those social barriers ripped apart for a bit. There is a relief in the chaos brought by this joker. There’s a certain degree of power and respect given to the fool, partially because he’s not taken seriously but also because of his willingness to play the part. Some of this immunity is lent to the artist by embracing the playful and foolish nature of the Jester.
Artists constantly get away with socially unacceptable behaviour, and their eccentric nature is excused because of this archetypical expression. We see it constantly - artists are almost expected to be eccentric and weird. To wear their motley and to jig around like crazed. We are not surprised to learn about the drugs, quips, and antics of artists - in fact, we often expect them. We expect them to fully embrace this hedonistic and sardonic character; somebody who is larger than life - endlessly entertained and eternally pursuing the next laugh. Never bored, never stopping always on a high octane chase, chasing creativity - chasing life. This is afforded them by the fool’s immunity. There is more than just social protection that the Jester is granted.
Humour can and is often used as a way to distance oneself especially emotionally from either other people or from tough experiences and events. The Jester uses humour and their playfulness as a defense - to shield themselves from the hardships of the world and from being emotionally vulnerable. Humour is a great defence mechanism and an incredibly common one - in fact, a common reaction to shock is almost hysterical laughter. Jokes can be used as a way to mask insecurities and shift the focus from negative things to more positive and light-hearted matters. Making people laugh is a way to make people like you, it’s a way to gain approval and somebody who’s been struggling with that often finds themselves channelling the archetype of the Jester. It’s better to have people laugh with you than at you.
While this may all make the playful and light-hearted fool seem like an overall positive character who brings joy and laughter wherever he goes, like every other archetype the Jester too casts a shadow.
The Jester’s Shadow
Everything casts a shadow and even our whimsical side brings with it some negatives and potential risks. The curse of a person who entirely and almost always channels this archetype is that people won’t take them seriously. Constantly wearing a mask of optimism and smiles can wear down a person and make it difficult for them to express a wider range of emotions. Emotional blockages and suppression of feelings can be harmful in the long run, and a Jester runs the risk of doing this especially because of their positive traits. Suppressing feelings leads to them eventually bubbling up to the surface and a person not dealing with them faces the risk of a mental breakdown or developing unhealthy coping mechanisms. Not dealing with negative feelings can lead to severe depression, and solitude with social isolation being a way to deal with the constant pressure to perform and be positive. These can also manifest as less kind jokes from the Jester’s side.
Another shadow being cast is using humour as a way to push others down and to release pent-up rage and other negative emotions. Using sarcasm and sardonic remarks to hurt others or gain approval at the cost of others is an ugly side to the fool’s archetype. A person desperate for approval and laughter may do so at the cost of themselves or the expense of others - a typical bully is somebody who makes fun of others to increase their own social status. Beyond hurting others and not being taken seriously Jesters also run the risk of not taking things seriously.
This can harm their relationships and have some dire consequences. This can manifest as delusions and an inability to take proper care of oneself or see to the needs of others. Thinking everything is a game and that everything is fine can lead a person to be careless and make some really stupid and possibly dangerous decisions. It can also mean a person isn’t able to take care and look after themselves. Relating back to artists this commonly manifests as a carefree attitude which leads to needing external help organising and helping with things like logistics, budgeting and sometimes even more seriously stopping dangerous behaviour. The final dark that hides behind the joyful mask the Jester wears is fear.
It’s a fear of not being enough, not being funny, entertaining or joyful enough. A fear of actually being a fool - not by choice but by nature, and that one’s lot in life is to be a laughing stock for others. This can make way for wallowing in negativity and not finding meaning in one’s life. If we rely too heavily on the Jester to fill us with joy and to avoid boredom and all negativity then when we actually face hardships and struggles that we can’t laugh at we may be stricken by a terrible depression. If we rely solely on that external validation from others we can become insecure and desperate attention seekers who will do anything for a smile or a laugh, just anything for the slightest crumb of approval.
Summary
The Jester is a part of us that enjoys the good things in life, it’s our optimistic side which finds joy and light even in the dark. It’s our playfulness and our ability to engage with the world through humour and light-heartedness. While we find Jester’s to be fools and we find them and their behaviour entertaining we also hold an admiration and a respect for them and the role they occupy. It’s not an easy job, and while we can both be envious and hold contempt for the whimsical among us we also realise that they are important. They are a splash of colour to an otherwise pretty monotone world.
The Jester is an important archetype to artists and creatives because of its qualities, but like everyone else, they need to be careful that they don’t fully encompass the Joker and their shadow. The shadowy side of these fun-loving pranksters includes an inability to be taken seriously and take others seriously. It’s all fun and games, and this delusional attitude can often become a hindrance. We need to be careful and take some matters seriously - especially if they’re important to others. Too many times have I met people who are all about having a good time, it takes a great toll on them and their loved ones, especially when they can’t deal with negativity. The shadow of the Jester is a toxic positivity that spoils the light-hearted and colourful traits of the archetype.
Embraced correctly the Jester can teach us about over-seriousness and liberate us from negativity. But if left unexamined these behaviours can lead us to negativity and emotional damage. We should use humour as a way to bring people up, not to bring others down to bring ourselves up, and we should use the confidence of the Jester to bring joy to the world, and not let the fool’s need for approval dictate us and our actions.
