The Good, the Bad, and the Funny
An Ethics of Humor
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21395060 |
|---|---|
| Authors | John Morreall (corresponding author) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 58 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 632-647 |
| Publication date | 2020-12-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The Southern Journal of Philosophy (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0038-4283 • E-ISSN: 2041-6962 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/sjp.12390 |
| OpenAlex | W3093327920 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 5 |
This article begins by reviewing the overwhelmingly negative assessment of laughter and humor in Western philosophy and in Christianity, arguing that that evaluation arises from a misclassification of amusement as a malicious emotion. It then sketches a play theory of humor in which humor is an activity pursued for pleasure which allows participants to violate linguistic and social norms, especially rules about sincerity. Once we understand humor as a kind of play, familiar ethical objections to jokes based on gender and race are seen to be mistaken, and a new approach to the negative ethics of humor becomes possible. What is more, this play theory also explains how humor is morally praiseworthy in many situations
Amusement · Epistemology · Humor research · Laughter · Pleasure · Sincerity · Education and Critical Thinking Development · Ethics, Aesthetics, and Art · Humor Studies and Applications · Philosophy · Psychology · Social Psychology
Moral Standing, Moral Trusteeship, and Moral Community
Is this “fascist” laughter? Notes on the ethics of humor
Presidential address to the annual conference of the Australasian Association of Philosophy, delivered on July 7, 2024 at the University of Western AustraliaOnly Joking
On the ‘only joking’ defence against offence
Not taking oneself too seriously
| Unique citing works | 5 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1,67 |
| Citation span | 2023 - 2026 (4) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 5 |