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Despite popular opinions of the 'dark Middle Ages' and a 'gloomy early modern age,' many people laughed, smiled, giggled, chuckled, entertained and ridiculed each other. This volume demonstrates how important laughter had been at times and how diverse the situations proved to be in which people laughed, and this from late antiquity to the eighteenth century. The contributions examine a wide gamut of significant cases of laughter in literary texts, historical documents, and art works where laughter determined the relationship among people. In fact, laughter emerges as a kaleidoscopic phenomenon reflecting divine joy, bitter hatred and contempt, satirical perspectives and parodic intentions. In some examples protagonists laughed out of sheer happiness and delight, in others because they felt anxiety and insecurity. It is much more difficult to detect premodern sculptures of laughing figures, but they also existed. Laughter reflected a variety of concerns, interests, and intentions, and the collective approach in this volume to laughter in the past opens many new windows to the history of mentality, social and religious conditions, gender relationships, and power structures.

Theory of knowledge --- humor --- epistemology --- Affective and dynamic functions --- Art --- Literature --- anno 500-1499 --- anno 1500-1599 --- Laughter in literature. --- Humor in literature. --- Laughter --- Wit and humor, Medieval. --- Wit and humor --- Rire dans la littérature --- Humour dans la littérature --- Rire --- Humour médiéval --- Humour --- History. --- Philosophy. --- Religious aspects. --- History and criticism. --- Histoire --- Philosophie --- Aspect religieux --- Histoire et critique --- Laughter -- History. --- Laughter -- Philosophy. --- Laughter -- Religious aspects. --- Wit and humor -- History and criticism. --- Wit and humor -- History. --- Laughter in literature --- Humor in literature --- Wit and humor, Medieval --- Languages & Literatures --- Literature - General --- History --- Philosophy --- Religious aspects --- History and criticism --- Rire dans la littérature --- Humour dans la littérature --- Humour médiéval --- Laughter (in religion, folk-lore, etc.) --- Laughing --- Bons mots --- Facetiae --- Humor --- Jests --- Jokes --- Ludicrous, The --- Ridiculous, The --- Wit and humor, Primitive --- Emotions --- Nonverbal communication --- Joking --- Laughter / in Literature. --- lachen