Self-referential humor
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Self-referential humor, also known as self-reflexive humor, self-aware humor, or meta humor, is a typeof comedic expression that—either directed toward some other subject, or openly directed toward it
An example of self-referential humor on a shared noticeboard
A self-referencing work of graffiti apologizing for its own existence
Fourth wall
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The fourth wall is a common convention in narrative drama in which a metaphorical, invisible, or imaginary wall separates performers from the audience, so that the audience sees through this "wall" in
Self-referential humor
…abbreviation itself, thus in effect repeating one or more words. "RAS" stands for Redundant Acronym Syndrome and so RAS syndrome is self-referencing. Breaking the fourth wall Dadaism…
In Stanislavski's production of The Cherry Orchard (Moscow Art Theatre, 1904), a three-dimensional box set gives the illusion of a real room. The actors act as if unaware of the audience, separated by an invisible "fourth wall", defined by the proscenium arch.
The proscenium arch of the theater in the Auditorium Building, Chicago. It is the frame decorated with square tiles that form the vertical rectangle separating the stage (mostly behind the lowered curtain) from the auditorium (the area with seats).
Typical stage, fourth wall being the house
Josef Forte, as Dr. Alfred Carroll, breaks the fourth wall to warn viewers at the end of Reefer Madness, 1936.