In store now! Humour, by Terry Eagleton
Legendary critic and philosopher Terry Eagleton continues his deep dives into the most fundamental aspects of human experience with Humour. Guiding us through the sources, evocations, and manifestations of humour throughout history, Eagleton aims to reveal its most essential nature as a defining feature of human culture.
Order your copy today directly through October Books or buy online through our bookshop store and we’ll get a commission on your purchase.
Humour by Terry Eagleton
Paperback £10.99
A compelling guide to the fundamental place of humour and comedy within Western culture-by one of its greatest exponents Written by an acknowledged master of comedy, this study reflects on the nature of humour and the functions it serves. Why do we laugh? What are we to make of the sheer variety of laughter, from braying and cackling to sniggering and chortling? Is humour subversive, or can it defuse dissent? Can we define wit? Packed with illuminating ideas and a good many excellent jokes, the book critically examines various well-known theories of humour, including the idea that it springs from incongruity and the view that it reflects a mildly sadistic form of superiority to others. Drawing on a wide range of literary and philosophical sources, Terry Eagleton moves from Aristotle and Aquinas to Hobbes, Freud, and Bakhtin, looking in particular at the psychoanalytical mechanisms underlying humour and its social and political evolution over the centuries.
Order your copy today directly from October Books or buy online through our bookshop store and we’ll get commission on your purchase.
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