The Joke and Its Relation to the Unconscious

Why do we laugh? The answer, argued Freud in this groundbreaking study of humor, is that jokes, like dreams, satisfy our unconscious desires. The Joke and Its Relation to the Unconsciousexplains how jokes provide immense pleasure by releasing us from our inhibitions and allowing us to express sexual, aggressive, playful, or cynical instincts that would otherwise remain hidden. In elaborating this theory, Freud brings together a rich collection of puns, witticisms, one-liners, and anecdotes, which, as Freud shows, are a method of giving ourselves away. Translated by Joyce Crick. Introduction by John Carey.

Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) lived his entire life in Vienna until Hitler's invasion of Austria forced him to seek asylum in London in 1938. The father of psychoanalysis, he exerted a profound influence over the whole intellectual climate of the twentieth century.

Adam Phillips was formerly Principal Child Psychotherapist at Charing Cross Hospital in London. He is the author of several books on psychoanalysis, including On Kissing, Tickling, and Being Bored; Darwin's Worms; Promises, Promises; and Houdini's Box.

Joyce Crick was for many years a senior lecturer in German at University College London. In 2000, she was awarded the Schlegel Tieck Prize for her translation of Freud's The Interpretation of Dreams for Oxford University Press.

John Carey is an emeritus professor of English at Oxford, a fellow of the British Academy, and chief book reviewer for the London Sunday Times.