«Humor». A Lengthy History?

Abstract

The story of humor writing goes hand in hand with the formation of the modern western subject in the sense of sociality and freedom. But should this story be seen as a coherent evolutionary curve toward the pinnacle of modernity, or rather as a fracture experience in front of the growing gap between the free subjectivity of the individual and the abstract reason based on evidence? In exploring the varied and complex history of humor, the recent volume by Giancarlo Alfano examines some of the foundational elements of our literary modernity and allows us to deeply investigate the anthropological roots of our present.