Joking and Ethnic Stereotyping

Humor across ethnic lines has been considered as a form of aggression, especially used by the oppressed. As a form of aggression, however, such joking plays an ambiguous role. Several writers have emphasized the role of humor in displacing aggression, rather than in arousing it. Humor is often neith...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Anthropological quarterly 1970-04, Vol.43 (2), p.93-113
Main Author: Zenner, Walter P.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anecdotes
Christianity
Culture/Cultures/Cultural/ Culturally
Ethnic stereotypes
Ethnic/Ethnically
Humor
Jewish peoples
Joke/Jokes/Joking
Jokes
Judaism
Muslims
Non-Western
Priests
Stereotype/Stereotypes/ Stereotyped/ Stereotyping
Tricksters
Citations: Items that cite this one
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Summary:Humor across ethnic lines has been considered as a form of aggression, especially used by the oppressed. As a form of aggression, however, such joking plays an ambiguous role. Several writers have emphasized the role of humor in displacing aggression, rather than in arousing it. Humor is often neither positive nor negative, but sidesteps such "serious" categories. Most previous discussions have dealt with inter-ethnic humor within Western society. In this article, an analysis is made of jokes told by Druzes and other Middle Easterners. Particular attention is given to jokes dealing with the clergy and with other religio-ethnic groups.
ISSN:0003-5491
1534-1518
DOI:10.2307/3316601