Cochrane, T. (2017) No hugging, no learning: The limitations of humour. British Journal of Aesthetics, 57 (1). pp. 51-66. ISSN 0007-0904
Abstract
This article claims that the capacity of humorous works to influence our attitudes is limited. We can only find something funny if we regard it as norm-violating in a way that doesn’t make certain pragmatic demands upon us (e.g. to defend the norm). It is compatible with these conditions that humour reinforces an attitude about a norm-violation. However it is not compatible with these conditions that we reject some existing attitude. Such a rejection would require that we recognize our attitude as norm-violating in a way that has pragmatic force. Thus if a humorous work reveals the absurdity of something, we can either find it funny and not have our attitudes significantly influenced, or else be significantly influenced but not find it funny.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © British Society of Aesthetics 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Society of Aesthetics. This is an author produced version of a paper subsequently published in British Journal of Aesthetics. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | comedy; aesthetics; amusement; cognitive value |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Arts and Humanities (Sheffield) > Department of Philosophy (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 19 Oct 2016 10:01 |
Last Modified: | 20 Feb 2019 01:38 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1093/aesthj/ayw073 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Oxford University Press |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1093/aesthj/ayw073 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:106092 |