Humour through the Scope of Social Theories and Pragmatic Approaches

Abstract

Abstract: For many years, humour has been the subject of scientific research and it has been related to movies, television shows, literature, sociology, and others. When analysing how comic effect is achieved, humour can be complicated and multifaceted. For that reason, there is no specific theory that explains humour ideally. However, the various social theories and pragmatic approaches to humour, each of which focuses on the different aspects of humour functioning, complement each other. The article aims to present the propositions on humour and the central claims of different social theories and pragmatic approaches. Attention is focused on the butt of the ridicule, the psychoanalytic aspect of humour, and the surprise element. In addition, human agency, cultural knowledge, linguistic means and cognition, ostensive stimuli, and inferential reasoning are also outlined. Thus, the article contributes to a more profound and adequate understanding of the inventive and resourceful propositions on humour and comic discourse analysis. Keywords: humour, superiority theory, relief theory, incongruity theory, conversational maxims, relevance theory.