This book starts from three observations. First, the use of humour is a complex, puzzling, and idiosyncratically human form of behaviour (and hence is of scientific interest). Second, there is currently no theory of how humour works. Third, one...
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This book starts from three observations. First, the use of humour is a complex, puzzling, and idiosyncratically human form of behaviour (and hence is of scientific interest). Second, there is currently no theory of how humour works. Third, one useful step towards a theory of humour is to analyze humorous items in precise detail, in order to understand their mechanisms.The author begins by considering how to study jokes rigorously: the assumptions to make, the guidelines to follow and the pitfalls to avoid. A critique of other work on humour is also provided. This introduces some important con
Book Cover; Title; Contents; Acknowledgements; Introduction; Assumptions and methodology; Linguistic preliminaries; Incongruity and its resolution; Two models of incongruity-resolution; The General Theory of Verbal Humour; Joke similarity and identity; Manipulating interpretations; The structure of puns; Some computational studies; Pragmatic and discourse issues; Speculations on joke structure; Future directions; Formal definitions; Examples; Glossary; References; Index