Reader’s Digest India – August 2019

Reader’s Digest

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I

n a 1997 episode of Seinfeld called

‘The Comeback’, George Costanza

is merrily stuffing himself with

free shrimp at a meeting. His

coworker mocks him: “Hey,

George, the ocean called. They’re

running out of shrimp.” George sits

there humiliated as laughter fills the

room, his mind searching frantically

for the perfect riposte. It’s only later,

on the drive home, that he thinks of

the comeback. But the moment has

passed. (That may have been a good

thing, since George’s epiphany was,

predictably, mediocre: “Well, the

jerk store called and they’re running

out of you!”)

The disappointing experience of

thinking of the perfect response too

late—l’esprit de l’escalier, or “stair-

case wit”—was identified by French

philosopher Denis Diderot. He was

so overwhelmed by an argument at a

party that he could think clearly again

only once he’d gotten to the bottom of

the stairs.

We’ve all been there, envying those

who are quicker on their feet. So we

decided to ask people who rely on

witty rejoinders for a living—improv

performers, freestyle rappers and

others—how anyone might seize

the opportunity for clever retorts in

everyday life. Here are their insights.

Don’t think too much

In improv, the funniest responses oc-

cur on the spur of the moment, says

Douglas Widick, a performer who

trained with Chicago’s Upright Citi-

zens Brigade [comedy group]. Don’t

worry about crafting the perfect

reply. “It’s about letting go of the need

to judge ourselves,” says Belina Raffy,

CEO of the Berlin-based company

Maffick, which uses improv skills in

business. “Especially if we are ope-

rating from the desire to make each

other look good—a key tenet of im-

provisation.” Not every riposte will be

a gem, but some will hit their mark.

Listen before you leap

Still, spend some time considering the

argument that your sparring partner

is laying out. Your retort may be more

accurate and therefore more success-

ful, says Jim Tosone, a business tech-

nology executive turned improv coach

who developed the Improv Means

Business programme.

Put a few in the bank
Some of history’s most skilled come-
back artists stored witticisms for later
use and were able to pull them out
of their memory at the critical time.
Winston Churchill was known for
his comebacks, but Tim Riley, direc-
tor and chief curator at the National
Churchill Museum in Fulton, Mis-
souri, says that many of his burns
were borrowed.
One of his most famous lines was
in response to a jab from politician
Bessie Braddock: “Winston, you are
drunk.” The Prime Minister replied,
nb “Bessie, my dear, you are ugly. But

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