Synopsis
This book is written to open new avenues for philosophical treatments of humor and comedy. In doing so, it traces a history of conflating 'humor' and 'comedy' to a standard interpretation of the Aristotelian theory of comedy and humor -~ an interpretation that continues to inform the main strains of contemporary philosophical theories of humor. The author makes a suggestion for recasting Aristotle's position. The suggestion offers grounds for distinguishing 'humor', 'comedy' and 'mirth'. In addition to outlining the grounds for recognizing this conceptual distinction, the book explores and distinguishes two theoretical strains informing understanding of humor. The author argues that the tendency to conflate 'humor' and 'comedy' is prompted by a domination in humor studies by what is termed the "Dionysian Performance Tradition". The author brings forward a possibility that the Dionysian Tradition has had a silent competitor, the "Mirth Tradition," which seems to inform our thinking about humor and humor-related concepts in everyday living and with which Aristotle may have been familiar. This silent competitor distinguishes 'humor' and 'comedy' and, in contrast to the Dionysian Tradition, casts humor in an ethically positive light.
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Review
"Kort suggests that the usual interpretation of Aristotle's comments on comedy does not address all he had to say and that some passages in Aristotle's known works, including Nicomachean Ethics, suggest that Aristotle had a theory of humor quite apart from his treatment of comedy... we may be on the verge of a revolution in the field..." -Richard C. Richards, Professor of Philosophy Emeritus California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. "Kort does not suggest that the rich and growing body of literature on comedy/humor in philosophy should be disregarded. Instead, she points out the importance of recognizing that these writings have concentrated only on one option for ways to consider humor.... In doing so, they have focused more on the tools of humor than on humor per se. If the 'Mirth Tradition' comes to be taken into account by writers as she suggests, this would increase the depth and breadth of studies on this subject." -Ronald S. Green, Professor, Dept. of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Coastal Carolina University.
About the Author
Dr. Eva Kort is a Lecturer at Costal Carolina University. She received her PhD. in Philosophy from the University of Florida.
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Conceptually Distinguishing Mirth, Humor, and Comedy: A Philosophical Analysis
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