The Mirth of Nations
Transaction Publishers (Verlag)
978-0-7658-0096-1 (ISBN)
A tightly argued book, The Mirth of Nations uses the comparative method to undermine existing theories of humor, which are rooted in notions of hostility, conflict, and superiority, and derive ultimately from Hobbes and Freud. Instead Davies argues that humor merely plays with aggression and with rule-breaking, and that the form this play takes is determined by social structures and intellectual traditions. It is not related to actual conflicts between groups. In particular, Davies convincingly argues that Jewish humor and jokes are neither uniquely nor overwhelmingly self-mocking as many writers since Freud have suggested. Rather Jewish jokes, like Scottish humor and jokes are the product of a strong cultural tradition of analytical thinking and intelligent self-awareness.
The volume shows that the forty-year popularity of the Polish joke cycle in America was not a product of any special negative feeling towards Poles. Jokes are not serious and are not a form of determined aggression against others or against one's own group. The Mirth of Nations is readable as well as revisionist. It is written with great clarity and puts forward difficult and complex arguments without jargon in an accessible manner. Its rich use of examples of all kinds of humor entertains the reader, who will enjoy a great variety of jokes while being enlightened by the author's careful explanations of why particular sets of jokes exist and are immensely popular. The book will appeal to general readers as well as those in cultural studies.
Christie Davies is professor of sociology at the University of Reading, England. He has been a visiting lecturer in India, Poland, and the United States, and has taught in Australia. He is the author of books on criminology, the sociology of morality, censorship and humor, and his work has been published as book chapters or in journals worldwide. These works include Wrongful Imprisonment, The Strange Death of Moral Britain, and The Corporation under Siege.
Acknowledgments, 1. Introduction, 2. The Self-Mocking Scottish Sense of Humor, 3. The Balanced Jewish Sense of Humor, 4. Jokes about Jewish Women and Australian Men, 5. Canadian Jokes about Newfoundlanders: Neighborly, Bilingual, North American, 6. Jokes about Newfies and Jokes Told by Newfoundlanders, 7. American Jokes about Poles, 8. Polish Jokes and Polish Conflicts, 9. Conclusion, General Bibliography, Index
| Erscheint lt. Verlag | 31.5.2002 |
|---|---|
| Verlagsort | Somerset |
| Sprache | englisch |
| Maße | 152 x 229 mm |
| Gewicht | 498 g |
| Themenwelt | Geschichte ► Teilgebiete der Geschichte ► Kulturgeschichte |
| Sozialwissenschaften ► Ethnologie ► Volkskunde | |
| Sozialwissenschaften ► Soziologie | |
| ISBN-10 | 0-7658-0096-9 / 0765800969 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0-7658-0096-1 / 9780765800961 |
| Zustand | Neuware |
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