From Thomas Hobbes' fear of the power of laughter to the compulsory, packaged "fun" of the contemporary mass media, Billig takes the reader on a stimulating tour of the strange world of humour. Both a significant work of scholarship and a novel contribution to the understanding of the humourous, this is a seriously engaging book' - David Inglis, University of Aberdeen

This delightful book tackles the prevailing assumption that laughter and humour are inherently good. In developing a critique of humour the author proposes a social theory that places humour - in the form of ridicule - as central to social life. Billig argues that all cultures use ridicule as a disciplinary means to uphold norms of conduct and conventions of meaning.

Historically, theories of humour reflect wider visions of politics, morality and aesthetics. For example, Bergson argued that humour contains an element of cruelty while Freud suggested that we deceive ourselves about the true nature of our laughter. Billig discusses these and other theories, while using the topic of humour to throw light on the perennial social problems of regulation, control and emancipation.

This brilliant first novel, brimming with humour and charm, is a chronicle of Englishman David Dunlop's mostly incompetent attempts to rise to even the most basic challenges of living in the remote Scottish Highlands. Interspersed with wry cameos from his past life as an aspiring junior executive in southern England, his absurd predicaments not only portray the vast cultural contrast between the English suburbanite and the West Coast Gael, but also highlight his own personal inadequacies. The frustrations of the unsatisfactory marriage, career and materialistic existence he left behind are replaced by equally frustrating new perversities of climate, inanimate objects and West Coast mores. You'll shed a tear from both laughter and pathos as the plot slides from wry humour to a climax of pure farce.

This book starts from three observations. First, theuse of humour is a complex, puzzling, andidiosyncratically human form of behaviour (and henceis of scientific interest). Second, there is currentlyno theory of how humour works. Third, one useful steptowards a theory of humour is to analyse humorousitems in precise detail, in order to understand their mechanisms.

What’s So Funny? Book 02 + Audio CD
Весёлые истории послушать не хотите ли? :) В этой книге вы найдёте 24 смешных рассказа, к каждому прилагается раздел с вокабуляром, вопросы на понимание текста и примечания. В комплекте с книгой идёт АудиоCD с озвученными рассказами.
For students with a reading level over 3,000 words. The series is designed for leisure reading or as a homework assignment over a long school holiday. Since humour is important in the English language, it is beneficial to become familiar with English humour. An audio CD helps students paractice pronunciation.

English File 2

Student's Book, Workbook & »Listen and Speak« CDs