1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910453150403321

Autore

Hamilton Theresa

Titolo

Humorous structures of English narratives, 1200-1600 / / by Theresa Hamilton

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Newcastle upon Tyne, UK : , : Cambridge Scholars Publishing, , 2013

ISBN

1-4438-5327-5

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (1 volume)

Disciplina

341

Soggetti

English literature - Middle English, 1100-1500 - History and criticism

English literature - History and criticism

English wit and humor

Electronic books.

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Sommario/riassunto

We all have the ability to recognize and create humour, but how exactly do we do it? Salvatore Attardo and Victor Raskin have attempted to explain the workings of humour with their General Theory of Verbal Humor (1991). The central aim of Hamiltonas study is to test the usefulness of the General Theory of Verbal Humor on a specific corpus by identifying and interpreting the narrative structures that create humour. How well can this theory explain the way humour OEworksa in a particular tale, and can it provide us with interesting, novel interpretations? - - The genres used to test the General Theory of Verbal Humor are the fabliau, the parody and the tragedy. This corpus represents different kinds and degrees of humour and thus challenges the theory on various levels. - - Hamilton proposes a supplementation of the General Theory of Verbal Humor in order to create an effective means of undertaking what she calls a OEhumorist readinga. By posing the questions OEwhy is this humorous?a, OEhow is it humorous?a or OEwhy is it not humorous?a and providing the theoretical tools to answer them, a OEhumorist readinga can make a valuable contribution to understanding any given literary text and its place in society. -