Abstract

Mirth is a central feature of our experience of literature and related arts. This essay considers the nature and origins of mirth. It begins with a suggestion by Greimas regarding the structure of jokes. Greimas's view dovetails nicely with empirical research on the neurobiology that underlies our appreciation of humor, in particular the generation of meaning in the right hemisphere of the brain. The essay turns from this research to a componential analysis of emotion, considering what elements must enter into a cognitive account of an emotion. Ideally, such an account will include systemic/functional, neurobiological, and evolutionary components. Moreover, it is crucial to distinguish between the mechanisms produced by evolution and the reproductive functions that those mechanisms approximate. Having treated some of the neurobiological material, the essay takes up the systemic/functional aspect of mirth. Specifically, it argues that mirth is produced by particular practices (including right hemisphere meaning generation) that are characteristic of children when they are striving to accomplish tasks beyond their developmental level. Even in cases where mirth is distinctly ‘adult’ (e.g., in obscenity), the mechanism at issue is characteristic of children. The final section argues that this mechanism is comprehensible in evolutionary terms as it fosters bonding and an appropriate degree of attention to children.