British laughter and humor in the long 18th century

Abstract This essay offers an overview of recent scholarship on British humor, satire, comedy, and laughter in the long 18th century. It focuses on scholarship that asks what provoked laughter in the 18th century, how the ethics and morals of laughter were gauged and contested, and what the political and social effects of laughter were, particularly in the context of cultural change and political crisis. Studies of laughter and humor …