On Student Journals

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Review of: Every Man His Way: Readings in Cultural Anthropology, ed. by Alan Dundes

Book Review

Joking asides: the theory, analysis, and aesthetics of humor

Includes bibliographical references and index.Oring analyzes key contemporary approaches to the study of humor and addresses controversial topics with new empirical data and insight. He tests appropriate incongruity against other major positions in the field, including Semantic Script Theory, the General Theory of Verbal Humor, Conceptual Integration Theory, and Benign Violation Theory.--Provided by publisher.What Freud actually said about jokes -- Parsing the joke: the general theory of verbal humor and appropriate incongruity -- Blending and humor -- On benign violations -- Humor and the discovery of false beliefs -- Framing Borat -- Risky business: political jokes under repressive regimes -- Listing towards lists: jokes on the Internet -- What is a narrative joke? -- Demythologizing the Jewish joke -- The ridiculous to the sublime: joke and art -- Contested performance and joke aesthetics

Review of: Folksongs and Their Makers, by Henry Glassie, Edward D. Ives, and John F. Szwed

Review

The Muhammad cartoons and humor research: A collection of essays

At the 2006 conference of the International Society for Humor Studies (Danish University of Education, Copenhagen), several panels addressed issues raised by the Muhammad cartoon story. Among these, a colloquium organized by Paul Lewis and decorously titled "Transnational Ridicule and Response" focused on the implications for humor research of the events surrounding the publication of the cartoons. Along with other materials, panelists were encouraged to review summaries of and timelines for the story available from the BBC and Wikipedia. Of the questions considered by panelists, the following drew interesting and, at times, provocative responses: Were the cartoons humorous; if so, did they represent a distinct or new kind of humor? Were the modes of global transmission of the cartoons new? Does the story have implications for ongoing humor research and advocacy? The goal was to approach the controversy not as partisans with particular political outlooks but as students of humor. The brief essays collected here were written following the conference by members of the panel (Christie Davies, Giselinde Kuipers, Paul Lewis, and Victor Raskin) and by two others who attended the colloquium (Elliott Oring and Rod A. Martin). After reviewing the essays, HUMOR editor Salvatore Attardo suggested that each of the participants be invited to read what the others had written and submit a brief response. Responses included here were received from Davies, Kuipers, Lewis, Oring, and Raskin