Comic Relief : A Comprehensive Philosophy of

Comic Relief: A Comprehensive Philosophy of Humor develops an inclusive theory that integrates psychological, aesthetic, and ethical issues relating to humor Offers an enlightening and accessible foray into the serious business of humor 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 Argues that humor's benefits overlap significantly with those of philosophy Includes a foreword by Robert Mankoff, Cartoon Editor of The New Yorker

John Morreall’s previous publications include Taking Laughter Seriously (1983); The Philosophy of Laughter and Humor (1987); Humor Works (1997); and Comedy, Tragedy, and Religion (1999). In 2004 and 2005, he was elected President of the International Society for Humor Studies. His work has been featured in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Economist.

Foreword	p. ix
Preface	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xiii
No Laughing Matter: The Traditional Rejection of Humor and Traditional Theories of Humor	p. 1
Humor, Anarchy, and Aggression	p. 2
The Superiority Theory: Humor as Anti-social	p. 4
The Incongruity Theory: Humor as Irrational	p. 9
The Relief Theory: Humor as a Pressure Valve	p. 15
The Minority Opinion of Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas: Humor as Playful Relaxation	p. 23
The Relaxation Theory of Robert Latta	p. 24
Fight or Flight - or Laughter: The Psychology of Humor	p. 27
Humor and Disengagement	p. 28
Humor as Play	p. 33
Laughter as a Play Signal	p. 36
From Lucy to "I Love Lucy": The Evolution of Humor	p. 40
What Was First Funny?	p. 41
The Basic Pattern in Humor: The Playful Enjoyment of a Cognitive Shift Is Expressed in Laughter	p. 49
The Worth of Mirth	p. 64
That Mona Lisa Smile: The Aesthetics of Humor	p. 69
Humor as Aesthetic Experience	p. 70
Humor and Other Ways of Enjoying Cognitive Shifts: The Funny, Tragic, Grotesque, Macabre, Horrible, Bizarre, and Fantastic	p. 73
Tragedy vs. Comedy: Is Heavy Better than Light?	p. 75
Enough with the Jokes: Spontaneous vs. Prepared Humor	p. 83
Laughing at the Wrong Time: The Negative Ethics of Humor	p. 90
Eight Traditional Moral Objections	p. 91
The Shortcomings in the Contemporary Ethics of Humor	p. 98
A More Comprehensive Approach: The Ethics of Disengagement	p. 101
First Harmful Effect: Irresponsibility	p. 102
Second Harmful Effect: Blocking Compassion	p. 103
Third Harmful Effect: Promoting Prejudice	p. 105
Having a Good Laugh: The Positive Ethics of Humor	p. 111
Intellectual Virtues Fostered by Humor	p. 112
Moral Virtues Fostered by Humor	p. 115
Humor during the Holocaust	p. 119
Homo Sapiens and Homo Ridens: Philosophy and Comedy	p. 125
Was Socrates the First Stand-up Comedian?	p. 126
Humor and the Existentialists	p. 129
The Laughing Buddha	p. 133
The Glass Is Half-Empty and Half-Full: Comic Wisdom	p. 139
Notes	p. 146
Bibliography	p. 160
Index	p. 179
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

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Comic Relief : A Comprehensive Philosophy of Humor

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