One element of Comedy that has stood the test of time is the belief that there must be a character that is not very bright. Whether they are stricken with poor decision-making or poor balance it is the fool that finds himself getting in the most trouble for a variety of different reasons. This character usually has very specific traits, and in the end his clumsy mistakes are noticed by those around him and he must face the consequences. The characters that have been highlighted below have all found themselves in precarious situations where they have, in some way or another, made themselves out to be the fool.

In The Comical Sayings of Paddy Cork (Glasgow, c.1850) the hero Teague has made a poor decision in problem solving. His master's dog has gotten its head stuck in a milk pail and Teague decides that the sensible thing to do is to cut the dog's head off in an attempt to save the pail.

In The Comical History of Simple John (Glasgow, 1840-1850) John has been facing a new misfortune every day since he was married. On one particular day he is attempting to collect water from a well and finds himself falling in and getting completely stuck.

Margaret and the Minister tells the story of a woman who has brought a gift over to her priest's house and has been invited in for dinner. Margaret is not used to such fancy dinner settings, and is not familiar with the other guests. The priest tells her to calm down and just follow her lead. Unfortunately that leads to some embarrassment.

When we meet up with Margaret later in the story she has been sitting quietly to herself throughout the entire dinner. At this point she has finally gained up the courage to try one of the unfamiliar food items that are on the table. Unfortunately for her, she chooses to take a spoonful of mustard which causes quite a shock to her senses and forces her to stand up, flailing wildly.

In The Anecdote-Book (Glasgow, 1850) the reader is introduced to a man who has one foot larger than the other and is forced to order two different-sized shoes. He foolishly attempts to put the smaller shoe on his larger foot and immediately blames the shoemaker for messing up his order.

In another anecdote, the demands of a ship captain become lost in translation when he asks a deckhand to throw him the buoy. After some time the deckhand returns saying that he was unable to catch a boy but was able to toss the old cook overboard.