Abstract

CASTRO, Sixto J.. Joke as a Hermeneutic Paradigm. Diánoia [online]. 2011, vol.56, n.67, pp.87-111. ISSN 0185-2450.

In this paper, after introducing the different theories of laughter, we defend that basic laughter (that one without a social function) has incongruity as its necessary, though not sufficient, element. Besides, we propose the joke (made primarily to provoke laughter) as a hermeneutic paradigm of understanding that provides a new view of a state of affairs, and breaks with what should be naturally expected from the course of the narrative. Even though there is a series of possible interpretations, only one is the right one, and that is the one that makes the joke a joke.

Keywords : laughter; understanding; incongruity; meaning; ontology.

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