<![CDATA[Stop Me If You've Heard This: A History and Philosophy of Jokes]]>

false <![CDATA[Stop Me If You've Heard This: A History and Philosophy of Jokes]]>

3360940

In the fine tradition of On Bullshit comes this outrageous, uproarious compendium of absurdity, filth, racy paradox, and mature philosophical reflection. Stop Me If You've Heard This is the first book to trace the evolution of the joke from the stand-up comics of ancient Athens to the comedy-club Seinfelds of today. Cropping up en route are such unforgettable figures as Poggio, a Renaissance papal secretary and sexual adventurer; and Gershon Legman, the FBI-hounded psychoanalyst of dirty jokes. Having explored humor's history in part one, Jim Holt then delves into philosophy in part two. Jewish jokes; Wall Street jokes; jokes about rednecks and atheists, bulimics and politicians; jokes that you missed if you didn't go to a Catholic girls' school; jokes about language and logic itselfall become fodder for the grand theories of Aristotle, Kant, Freud, and Wittgenstein. A heady mix of the high and the low, of the ribald and the profound, this handsomely illustrated volume demands to be read by anyone who has ever peered into the abyss and asked: What's so funny?

3400181

2008

Stop Me If You've Heard This: A History and Philosophy of Jokes

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4 2 false false Fri Jul 18 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Jul 05 08:45:17 -0700 2008 Fri Jul 18 20:35:47 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Oct 20 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Oct 20 09:52:30 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 22 16:17:50 -0700 2009
I liked this book, though. It’s short—not much more than a glorified magazine article—but the h...more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Mar 09 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 05 12:58:55 -0800 2009 Mon Mar 09 18:49:25 -0700 2009
Is it funny?

Not really. It’s not a book of jokes. Rather a book about jokes. History and Philosophy. Well, there are a few jokes in it. But that’s not the point.

I don’t get it.

The most obvious criticism on...more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Mar 29 11:55:33 -0700 2009 Sun Mar 29 16:20:56 -0700 2009
aaaaand learned that the san francisco public library has the largest collection in the world of humorful books, The Schmulowitz Collection of Wit & Humor! no joke!

couple o' jokes:

how did helen k...more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Jul 13 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Jul 13 08:25:41 -0700 2009 Mon Jul 13 08:33:45 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Oct 22 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Oct 14 08:06:02 -0700 2008 Wed Oct 22 10:56:56 -0700 2008
And if you have ever won...more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Sep 21 06:34:11 -0700 2009 Mon Sep 21 06:36:23 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Tue Nov 25 22:29:04 -0800 2008 Sat Dec 06 16:38:37 -0800 2008 Customer: In silence.

Jokes and joking from the Ancient Greeks onwward. If I remember collectly, that one dates to Pompeii. Quick, fun read, which was expanded from a New Yorker article. ]]> 2 0 false false Sat Oct 10 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 10 17:32:19 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 14 21:51:42 -0700 2009 Oranges stands as evidence that a glorified New Yorker article can make for a fine book. This one, not so much.]]> 3 0 false false Thu Mar 05 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Thu Mar 05 18:42:25 -0800 2009 Thu Mar 05 18:42:38 -0800 2009 2 0 false false Wed Aug 20 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Fri Aug 22 10:02:53 -0700 2008 Fri Aug 22 10:31:39 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Jul 28 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Dec 31 11:04:52 -0800 2008 Wed Jul 29 12:20:07 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Sep 24 01:10:29 -0700 2008 Wed Sep 24 01:15:58 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Sun Nov 09 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Nov 01 18:49:10 -0700 2008 Sun Nov 09 18:23:00 -0800 2008
The synopsis of this book is a little...more...]]> 0 0 false false Thu Jan 22 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 02 17:11:02 -0800 2009 Sun Mar 15 17:24:41 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Tue Nov 18 10:09:50 -0800 2008 Sun Nov 09 19:04:34 -0800 2008 Tue Nov 18 10:09:50 -0800 2008 true history of the joke researched back to ancient texts. The pages are very small though, so you feel like a rockstar rea...more...]]> 1 0 false false Wed Sep 17 10:18:52 -0700 2008 Wed Sep 17 11:00:46 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Jul 22 12:45:25 -0700 2008 Tue Jul 22 12:45:25 -0700 2008 though it wasn't really a joke book, my fave from the book:
Why does a JAP (Jewish American Princess) like a man with a circumcised penis? Because she likes anything with 20% off.
Also enjoyed learning more about Mr. Legman - author of Rationale of...more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Aug 07 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Aug 07 16:32:56 -0700 2008 Thu Aug 07 16:40:02 -0700 2008 5 0 false false Wed Aug 20 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Aug 23 08:12:43 -0700 2008 Sat Aug 23 08:47:19 -0700 2008 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=3360940