humor-sociology

Click to edit Master title style,Click to edit Master text styles,Second level,Third level,Fourth level,Fifth level,31,*,1,HUMOR AND SOCIOLOGY,by Don L.F.Nilsen,and Alleen Pace Nilsen,“Hes really a humoristBut hes trying to give humor more respectability on university campuses.”,Talk about this idea in relation to what scholars say are the social functions of humor.,Meaning Making,Hierarchy Building,Cohesion Building,Tension Relief,Are these ideas the same for universities as they are for other institutions(business,church,military)?Does it depend on what part of the university you are thinking of?,2,3,Humor as a Social System,Giselinde Kuipers has pointed out that Humor not only breaks the ice between strangers,but unites people in different hierarchical positions.,It creates a sense of shared conspiracy in the context of illicit activities like gossiping or joking about superiors.,The flip side of this inclusive function is exclusion.Those who do not join in the laughter,because they do not get the joke,or even worse,because the joke targets them,will feel left out,shamed,or ridiculed.,Humor as a Social System,(Continued),“Joking relationshipsmanifest a consciousness of group identity or solidarity.”(Mahadev Apte),Joking promotes communities over hierarchy and reveals ambiguities in the fabric of society.Jokes are anti-rites that subvert the normative social order,the order usually validated and maintained by religious and civic ritual.(Mary Douglas),“One never laughs alonelaughter is always the laughter of a particular social group.”(David Viktoroff),4,The Theory of Social Control,Some theorists suggest that in close-knit communities,humor is a social corrective,linked with embarrassment.They argue that ridicule is not a “detachable negative,”but instead lies at the heart of humor.,This goes back to the beliefs of Henri Bergson,who called humor a“social correctiveintended to humiliate.”Bergson did not believe in group-created humor.Instead of interaction,he defined humor as one-sided:those who laugh and those who are laughed at.,5,From an opposite viewpoint,has come a set of“Humane Humor Rules.”,Do not target an attribute that cannot be changed.,Target yourself,i.e.use self-deprecating humor.,Target your own ethnic group or gender,but no other ethnic group or gender.,Never target the victim.,Always target a strength so that it empowers rather than humiliates the target.,TALK ABOUT THESE“RULES”WITH EXAMPLES OR COUNTER-CLAIMS.,6,The“Dyadic Tradition”=A Built-In Humor Community,Elliott Oring coined this term to refer to joking relationships among couples,siblings,or close friends.Incidents are largely humorous and involve insult,abuse,or references to shared experiences.,For example,in the photo,to the,right,if only,one of us,had been driving,to Heber,this roadside stand selling“,rustic furniture”,would,not have,seemed humorous.But,together we found it funny enough to stop for photographs,even if not to make a purchase.,Alleen and Friends,7,Here our grandsons are laughing simply from the surprise of“overlooking”Chicago from the Willis Tower.Explain these characteristics of this particular incident of“Dyadic Humor.”,Surprise,A new viewpoint,A sharing among family members,Incongruity,Understatement,Spur-of-the-moment word play,8,Comedy Teams Are Another Kind of Built-in,or“Dyadic,”Humor Community,Almost one tenth of the 500 performers in,Whos Who in Comedy,are part of a team.,Teams are more recognized and more memorable than are individuals.,Through interacting,team members can revitalize old gags.,Good“chemistry”enhances creativity and enjoyment.,Differing appearances,personalities and voices provide for contrast and for the efficient creation of stock characters,.,Audiences enjoy surprise,and anticipation because,the teams,do new material,but in a familiar style.,NAME SOME,TEAMS.,9,The People of the Joke,The Scots became“the people of the joke”about the same time as did the Jews.,Scottish jokes were about tricky Scotsmen who were covetous,argumentative,and obsessed with keeping the Sabbath.,Scots told the jokes about themselves,hence the self-mocking tone.,10,11,The People of the Joke,(,CONTINUED),British scholar,Christie Davies explains that what the Jews and the Scots have in common is a sense of double identity.,They are both grounded in their religious tradition,and love to argue for the sake of argument.,He believes that“From this arose the Jewish and Scottish pre-eminence in physics,philosophy and economics,and,in jokes that no other small nation can match”,12,The People of the Joke,(,CONTINUED),American folklorist Elliott Oring has studied the jokes made about Jewish women.He says that the Jewish American Princess is portrayed as“spoiled,self-centered,materialistic,excessively concerned about her appearance,and indifferent to sex and the needs of her family.”,In contrast,the Jewish American Mother is portrayed as overly solicitous of her children.She is always concerned with their feeding and their h