Humorinamerica
MY BLOGS
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Humor in America
http://humorinamerica.wordpress.com/
“Humor in America” (HA!) is a blog dedicated to the discussion of humor and humor studies in America. Authors retain copyright to their work as posted. *********************************************************** "The great virtue of humor is that it is philosophizing in action, a bright silver thread in the great duvet of existence. And one can easily engage in it for an hour or two every day." --Simon Critchley, On Humour
LATEST ARTICLES ( 325 )
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Thoughts on Charlie Hedbo
Humor in AmericaThose of us who study humor, and I would think that many people in general, have spent a lot of time the past few days thinking and reading abou... Read more
Posted on 10 January 2015 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
The Laughter of Millions: Finding Your Material in the “Vast Wasteland”
In the introduction to The Sitcom Reader: America Viewed and Skewed (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2005: 12) Mary M. Dalton and Laura R. Read more
Posted on 08 January 2015 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
“Can I Get to That Heart? Can I Get to That mind?”A Tribute to the Frank,...
Nine years ago in my first class in graduate school, a course on approaches to teaching writing, we read George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion as a break from... Read more
Posted on 27 December 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
Dysfunctional Family Holiday Warmup
Whether you’ll be riding over the river and through the woods, running the TSA gauntlet before boarding your homebound flight, or having the full catastrophe... Read more
Posted on 22 December 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
The Interview, Sony, North Korean Hackers, and American Film Comedy
Seth Rogan and James Franco love each otherThe Interview will not be playing at your local Cineplex. It will not be available on DVD, or on your favorite... Read more
Posted on 18 December 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
Trivializing Humor Revisited
For this, my final post on Humor in America this year, I would like to revisit the previous post, in which I made the case that by trivializing humor, we are... Read more
Posted on 15 December 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
Baby, It’s Cold Outside
::Enjoy Matt Powell’s excellent piece on this classic song. Originally posted on Humor in America: It’s the holidays – that all-encompassing term we use to... Read more
Posted on 11 December 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
Tis the Season – for LoR
I sat down to read Dear Committee Members, Julie Schumacher’s second novel, on the same day a former student emailed asking for a letter of recommendation to... Read more
Posted on 07 December 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
The Humor of the Grim Reaper
The Grim Reaper got its start in English lore during the 14th century. The symbol for death is a necessary reminder that death is always lurking in the shadows... Read more
Posted on 04 December 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
Opossum Carols, Or Walt Kelly’s Xmas Postludicrosity
As the first snows of December drift across my South St Louis windows, and the last shards of Thanksgiving turkey find their way into the requisite casseroles,... Read more
Posted on 01 December 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
A Friendly’s Farewell
Steven BrykmanOn the eve of Friendly’s announcing they are filing for bankruptcy and closing stores in Massachusetts, and in the spirit of Thanksgiving, let me... Read more
Posted on 29 November 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
A Slice of Magical Realism with Your Pumpkin Pie
“We wouldn’t perish without poetry, but we’d be considerably less,” says contemporary, formalist poet Kim Bridgford. I concur. Here she brings her fresh, vivid... Read more
Posted on 27 November 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
The Humor of Negroes by W.E.B. Du Bois [Mark Twain Quarterly, Fall-Winter...
::Great archival piece by W.E.B. DuBois, written for the Mark Twain Quarterly in 1942-3. “As it is, one can only say, that to the oppressed and unfortunate, to... Read more
Posted on 24 November 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
Thanksgiving with Bob Hope, Lady Gaga and Tennessee Ernie Ford
Some of the more meaningful Thanksgivings I have spent have been with strangers, far from home. Whether it be a mixed bag guest list peppered with other... Read more
Posted on 20 November 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
Kurt Vonnegut is Taken Seriously, and You Won’t Believe What Happens Next!
I’m not sure that it ranks as high as pictures of baby animals, meme-based quizzes, “infotainment” listicles, or Kim Kardashian’s prodigious rump, but Kurt... Read more
Posted on 17 November 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
There’s a Political Cartoonists Behind Every Successful Political Cartoon
I dare to venture a guess that most history scholars have at one time or another used a political cartoon to make a historical point, be it in class, in a... Read more
Posted on 13 November 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
Langston Hughes on Hard Laughter
Langston Hughes’s roughest book of poetry is also an homage to laughter.In 1925 Langston Hughes lived with his mother on the north side of S Street, a few... Read more
Posted on 04 November 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
Michael Collier’s Poem for the Season
I don’t know what to say about Michael Collier‘s poetry. but I do know that if this particular poem belongs on our blog, today is the day.Sinister, surreal,... Read more
Posted on 30 October 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
American Film Humor in 25 Screenshots, Part 1
It seems to me that the timing is right for an unapologetically mercenary post that plays with both my innate passion for making lists and my desire for startin... Read more
Posted on 27 October 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY -
The Problem with Unfocused Political Cartoons
One of the primary concerns of those who have fallen victim to the satire of political cartoonists is that there is no way to refute the allegations that the... Read more
Posted on 23 October 2014 HUMOR, SOCIETY