Comedy, Seriously [electronic resource] : A Philosophical Study /
Nikulin, D.author.
Comedy, Seriously provides a philosophical interpretation of comedy and argues that comedy displays a particular kind of rationality that reflects philosophical thinking. In particular, that comedy is defined not so much by laughter or jokes, but rather the structure of its plot, which is isomorphic with that of the philosophical argument. Comedy allows for the resolution of a conflict and the achievement of well-being and equality through action that follows the comic plot. Moreover, such action is propelled by the 'thinker on stage,' who, as socially and politically oppressed, contributes to the liberation of all and the achievement of the good life. Comedy, therefore, establishes the universal pattern for justice and well-being and allows us to rethink the notion of subjectivity not as the modern isolated subject, but rather as integrated with others through shared action and dialogical involvement.
Description based upon print version of record.
Cover; Title; Copyright; Contents; Preface; Acknowledgments; I History of Comedy; 1 The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: On the Ancient Origins of Comedy; Philosophy, Tragedy, and Comedy; Some Comic Structures and Definitions; Comedy, Old and New; Euripides and Menander; Roman Comedy: Plautus and Terence; New and Modern Comedy; Reflections on Comedy; 2 The Moderns: The Romantic Loss of Comedy; "Italian Theory"; Romantic Digression; Hegel's Unfulfilled Comedy; Freedom from Restraint: Romantic Literary Criticism; Modern Approaches; II Logic of Comedy
(i) Doubles Truth-Telling and Deceit(ii) Breaking the Fourth Wall; (iii) Comic Fate; 5 The Catastrophe of the Good Ending; All's Well That Ends Well; The Possibility of Well-Being; The Normativity of Comedy; Reflection: The Good Ending and Knowledge; Love and Life: Being toward Life; Laughter, Joke, Wit, and Humor; Love and Erõs; Passions; Comic Sex; Comic Money; Freedom; III Ethics of Comedy; 6 Foolish Wisdom: The Philosopher as a Comic Figure; Plot and Character; Comic Character: Individual or Universal?; The Smart Slave; Split Identity, Ambiguity, and Ambivalence: The Fool
Freedom for One, Freedom for All: The Paradox of FreedomStructures of Domination and Strategies of Liberation; Dianoia; Dialectician in the Situation of Uncertainty; The Cook; Socrates and the Figure of the Slave; Conclusion; Notes; Preface; Chapter 1; Chapter 2; Chapter 3; Chapter 4; Chapter 5; Chapter 6; Conclusions; Bibliography; Index
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Comedy, Seriously provides a philosophical interpretation of comedy and argues that comedy displays a particular kind of rationality that reflects philosophical thinking. In particular, that comedy is defined not so much by laughter or jokes, but rather the structure of its plot, which is isomorphic with that of the philosophical argument. Comedy allows for the resolution of a conflict and the achievement of well-being and equality through action that follows the comic plot. Moreover, such action is propelled by the 'thinker on stage,' who, as socially and politically oppressed, contributes to the liberation of all and the achievement of the good life. Comedy, therefore, establishes the universal pattern for justice and well-being and allows us to rethink the notion of subjectivity not as the modern isolated subject, but rather as integrated with others through shared action and dialogical involvement.
Philosophy of mind.
Political philosophy.
Modern philosophy.
Philosophy of Mind.
Political Philosophy.
Modern Philosophy.