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The Nature of Humor from the Victorians to the Present – Seminar is full
February 11, 2019 @ 9:30 am - February 13, 2019 @ 12:30 pm
$200. – $250.Tamar March, Ph.D.
What is the essence of humor, of wit, of irony? What is the mental faculty of discovering, expressing, or appreciating the ludicrous or absurdly incongruous in human behavior? Is the ability to be funny or to be amused by things that are funny definable? We will explore these questions by discussing examples drawn from a range of writers, including writers from the Victorian era (to compliment the theme of the VBMA’s current exhibition Victorian Radicals), ranging from Charles Dickens to Oscar Wilde and Sir W.S. Gilbert. Contemporary humorists, ranging from Dorothy Parker to David Sedaris, will also be included. Throughout, we will seek to understand the features of humor that seem permanent and those that are contingent on the moment.