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An Aesthetic Experience of Comedy: Dewey and Incongruity Theory

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An Aesthetic Experience of Comedy: Dewey and Incongruity Theory An Aesthetic Experience of Comedy: Dewey and Incongruity Theory A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts Jacob W. Coleman April 2021 © 2021 Jacob W. Coleman. All Rights Reserved. 2 This thesis titled An Aesthetic Experience of Comedy: Dewey and Incongruity Theory by JACOB W. COLEMAN has been approved for the Department of Philosophy and the College of Arts and Sciences by Yoichi Ishida Associate Professor of Philosophy Florenz Plassmann Dean, College of Arts and Sciences 3 Abstract COLEMAN, JACOB W., M.A., April 2021, Philosophy An Aesthetic Experience of Comedy: Dewey and Incongruity Theory Director of Thesis: Yoichi Ishida Dewey’s aesthetic theory as described in Art as Experience provides a unique lens through which many kinds of non-traditional art can explored. In this thesis, I present an account of relevant parts of Dewey’s theory as they apply to stand-up comedy, highlighting the characteristics of an experience and the natural tendency to move from disorder to order. I then detail key components of incongruity theory of humor, including but not limited to the emphasis on the necessity of incongruity for humor rather than its sufficiency. I show how the incongruity theory applies to a particular sub-genre of stand- up comedy, dark humor. I then argue that the creation or appreciation of dark humor can be aesthetic in Dewey’s sense. I conclude by responding to two potential criticisms of my argument. 4 Dedication For my mother, sister, and grandparents, to whom I owe everything. Also, in loving memory of Dr. Robert Hull, who first introduced me to philosophy and left us far too soon. 5 Acknowledgments I would extend thanks to the philosophy department of Ohio University. In particular, my fellow graduate students, both past and present, the members of my thesis committee, Dr. Robert Briscoe and Dr. Christoph Hanisch, my ever-patient thesis advisor, Dr. Yoichi Ishida, and Dr. James Petrik, department chair as well as the man who opened the door to the path I currently walk. 6 Table of Contents Page Abstract ............................................................................................................................... 3 Dedication ........................................................................................................................... 4 Acknowledgments............................................................................................................... 5 1: Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 7 2: Dewey’s Art as Experience............................................................................................. 8 2.1 Experience as an Experience .................................................................................. 8 2.2 An Aesthetic Experience....................................................................................... 10 2.3 The Artist’s Experience ........................................................................................ 13 3: Incongruity Theory of Humor ....................................................................................... 15 3.1 Humor in the Incongruous .................................................................................... 15 3.2 Examples in Stand-Up Comedy ............................................................................ 16 4: An Aesthetic Experience of the Comedian ................................................................... 20 4.1 Gathering Raw Material ........................................................................................ 20 4.2 Refining the Material ............................................................................................ 21 4.3 The End of a Joke ................................................................................................. 22 5: Dewey and Incongnruity Theory .................................................................................. 24 5.1 Aesthetics of Dark Comedy .................................................................................. 24 5.2 Misunderstanding Incongruity Theory ................................................................. 28 5.3 Narrowness of Scope ............................................................................................ 29 6: Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 31 References ......................................................................................................................... 32 7 1. Introduction Philosophical analyses of comedy center around theories of humor (e.g., Morreall 2009, Oring 2016, Roberts 2019). Consider this joke by Mitch Hedberg: Acid was my favorite drug. It opened up my mind. It expanded my mind. Because of acid, I now know that butter is way better than margarine. I saw through the bullshit. (Comedy Central Presents, “Mitch Hedberg.”) If we find this joke funny, what is it that amuses us? According to the incongruity theory of humor, we are amused because we find incongruity in this joke, that is, something that violates our expectations.1 Understanding what amuses us is important for understanding comedy, but of course there are other things we need to understand. For example, theories of humor focus on how listeners appreciate jokes, but there has been little analysis of humor from the perspective of the maker of humor: the comedian. Thus, in this thesis, I explore an aesthetic experience of a comedian. In particular, drawing on Dewey’s concept of aesthetic experience (Section 2), I argue that the comedian’s joke writing qualifies as a Deweyan aesthetic experience (Section 4). I also argue that a Deweyan analysis of joke writing and performance is consistent with the incongruity theory of humor (Section 5). 1 I will discuss this joke and the incongruity theory in Section 3. For other theories of humor, see Morreall (2009). 8 2. Dewey’s Art as Experience To understand an aesthetic experience of a comedian, we need to understand what it is to have an experience for Dewey. He distinguishes between what it is to experience something and what it is to have an experience, and he illustrates how an experience can be aesthetic.2 2.1 Experience and An Experience Dewey distinguishes between experience in general and an experience. Experience is continuous throughout our life. Our senses continuously take information from the world, and our engagement with that information also falls under the banner of experience. Our reacting to the ebb and flow of life constitutes the continuum of experience. Consider, for example, someone who says that she had an uneventful day. What she means is this: she was conscious and engaged with her environment throughout the day. She made decisions based on information gathered by her senses. But she didn’t find anything particularly worthy of mentioning. Of course, her experience on that day has beginnings and ends, but they are not intended or well defined. Instead, external forces or internal lethargy bring an end to action and thought (Dewey 1987 [1934], 42). That is, she experienced her day without having what Dewey calls an experience. 2 For my purpose, a simplified version of Dewey’s theory of an aesthetic experience is sufficient. For a more thorough discussion, see, e.g., Alexander (1987), Haskins (1992), Sawyer (2000), and Shusterman (2002). 9 According to Dewey, an experience is something discrete in the continuum of experience. An experience has a relatively well-defined beginning, and it ends when we complete the events or actions constituting that experience. Upon coming to an end, we can look back and reflect on an experience as something with a name: that fight with a loved one, that dance at a wedding, that roller coaster ride (Dewey 1987 [1934], 43). Moreover, an experience has a unifying structure: parts of the experience may be intellectual, emotional, or practical, but they all belong to the same experience. He can characterize his experience as that unpleasant fight, that beautiful dance, that fun roller coaster ride, etc. In other words, after the fact we ascribe the qualities that give unity to our experiences (Dewey 1987 [1934], 44). One important aspect of the structure of an experience is temporal cohesiveness. Parts of an experience are ordered sequentially. But the sequence need not be continuous. Things that happen within the time frame of the experience but do not contribute to the experience are not part of the experience. Consider, for example, workers constructing a skyscraper. Working raw material into such a structure is certainly an experience. It has a beginning where raw material arrives at the site; a middle where workers lay foundation, raise beams, put up walls, etc.; and an end where the building stands complete. If the workers were asked about the construction of the building, what would they say? Would they go over every detail of every day of the construction? Would they describe every lunch break or conversation that they had while working? Probably not. Not everything they did would be part of their experience of constructing the skyscraper. It is in the work 10 done where the experience lies. Thus, various pieces of the work they did come together to form their unified, discrete experience: the construction of the skyscraper. 2.2 An Aesthetic Experience What
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