Details

Comic Relief


Comic Relief

A Comprehensive Philosophy of Humor
New Directions in Aesthetics, Band 27 1. Aufl.

von: John Morreall

29,99 €

Verlag: Wiley-Blackwell
Format: EPUB
Veröffentl.: 24.08.2011
ISBN/EAN: 9781444358292
Sprache: englisch
Anzahl Seiten: 208

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Beschreibungen

<i>Comic Relief: A Comprehensive Philosophy of Humor</i> develops an inclusive theory that integrates psychological, aesthetic, and ethical issues relating to humor <ul> <li>Offers an enlightening and accessible foray into the serious business of humor</li> <li>Reveals how standard theories of humor fail to explain its true nature and actually support traditional prejudices against humor as being antisocial, irrational, and foolish</li> <li>Argues that humor’s benefits overlap significantly with those of philosophy</li> <li>Includes a foreword by Robert Mankoff, Cartoon Editor of <i>The New Yorker</i></li> </ul>
<p>Foreword ix<br /><i>Robert Mankoff</i></p> <p>Preface xi</p> <p>Acknowledgments xiii</p> <p><b>1 No Laughing Matter: The Traditional Rejection of Humor and Traditional Theories of Humor 1</b></p> <p>Humor, Anarchy, and Aggression 2</p> <p>The Superiority Theory: Humor as Anti-social 4</p> <p>The Incongruity Theory: Humor as Irrational 9</p> <p>The Relief Theory: Humor as a Pressure Valve 15</p> <p>The Minority Opinion of Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas: Humor as Playful Relaxation 23</p> <p>The Relaxation Theory of Robert Latta 24</p> <p><b>2 Fight or Flight – or Laughter: The Psychology of Humor 27</b></p> <p>Humor and Disengagement 28</p> <p>Humor as Play 33</p> <p>Laughter as a Play Signal 36</p> <p><b>3 From Lucy to “I Love Lucy”: The Evolution of Humor 40</b></p> <p>What Was First Funny? 41</p> <p>The Basic Pattern in Humor: The Playful Enjoyment of a Cognitive Shift is Expressed in Laughter 49</p> <p>The Worth of Mirth 64</p> <p><b>4 That Mona Lisa Smile: The Aesthetics of Humor 69</b></p> <p>Humor as Aesthetic Experience 70</p> <p>Humor and Other Ways of Enjoying Cognitive Shifts: The Funny, Tragic, Grotesque, Macabre, Horrible, Bizarre, and Fantastic 73</p> <p>Tragedy vs. Comedy: Is Heavy Better than Light? 75</p> <p>Enough with the Jokes: Spontaneous vs. Prepared Humor 83</p> <p><b>5 Laughing at the Wrong Time: The Negative Ethics of Humor 90</b></p> <p>Eight Traditional Moral Objections 91</p> <p>The Shortcomings in the Contemporary Ethics of Humor 98</p> <p>A More Comprehensive Approach: The Ethics of Disengagement 101</p> <p>First Harmful Effect: Irresponsibility 102</p> <p>Second Harmful Effect: Blocking Compassion 103</p> <p>Third Harmful Effect: Promoting Prejudice 105</p> <p><b>6 Having a Good Laugh: The Positive Ethics of Humor 111</b></p> <p>Intellectual Virtues Fostered by Humor 112</p> <p>Moral Virtues Fostered by Humor 115</p> <p>Humor during the Holocaust 119</p> <p><b>7 Homo Sapiens and Homo Ridens: Philosophy and Comedy 125</b></p> <p>Was Socrates the First Stand-up Comedian? 126</p> <p>Humor and the Existentialists 129</p> <p>The Laughing Buddha 133</p> <p><b>8 The Glass is Half-Empty <i>and </i>Half-Full: Comic Wisdom 139</b></p> <p>Notes 146</p> <p>Bibliography 160</p> <p>Index 179</p>
"As an intelligent treatment of what humor is and what it means, this work raises significant questions and proposes plausible answers." (<i>CHOICE,</i> September 2010)<br /> <br />
<b>John Morreall</b>’s previous publications include <i>Taking Laughter Seriously</i> (1983); <i>The Philosophy of Laughter and Humor</i> (1987); <i>Humor Works</i> (1997); and <i>Comedy, Tragedy, and Religion</i> (1999). In 2004 and 2005, he was elected President of the International Society for Humor Studies. His work has been featured in the <i>New York Times</i>, the <i>Washington Post</i>, and the <i>Economist</i>.
Western philosophy’s traditional assessment of the nature and value of humor has not been kind, as the standard theories made humor look antisocial, irrational, and foolish. It wasn’t until well into the twentieth century that humor gained even a semblance of respect. <i>Comic Relief</i> goes a great way toward ameliorating this injustice. In it, noted philosophical humor writer John Morreall develops a comprehensive theory that integrates psychological, aesthetic, and ethical issues relating to humor. He also presents and critiques the standard Superiority, Incongruity, and Relief Theories of humor, revealing how they not only fail to explain its nature, but actually support traditional prejudices against humor. While utilizing elements from traditional theories of humor, Morreall goes into much greater depth about the opposition between amusement and emotions, the cognitive and practical disengagement in humor, the psychological and social benefits of humor, and the comic vision of life itself. He further argues that humor’s benefits overlap significantly with those of philosophy, concluding that philosophy’s traditional rejection of humor has been an egregious error. Informed by scholarly research, <i>Comic Relief</i> is an enlightening and accessible foray into the serious business of humor.
"Of all of the humor scholars I know, John Morreall is the best at making original, fascinating, and useful observations. We should all be grateful that in <i>Comic Relief</i> he has once more demonstrated--in his witty and accessible style--that the play ethic is as important as the work ethic."<br /> –<b>Don L. F. Nilsen</b>, International Society for Humor Studies <p>"<i>Comic Relief</i> is an engaging, wide-ranging discussion of how humor is defined within the disciplines of philosophy and history, as well as a brilliant and comprehensive overview of how it is used today. This book is a superb addition to the body of genuinely important works on humor."<br /> –<b>Regina Barreca</b>, University of Connecticut</p>

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