Laughter, Power, and the Unconscious: Researching Emotional Responses in a Contemporary Audience Spectating...

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Maria Grazia Turri Bridget Escolme (Queen Mary, University of London, UK)

Laughter, Power, and the Unconscious

Researching Emotional Responses in a Contemporary Audience Spectating Early Modern Comedy at...

Maria Grazia Turri, Bridget Escolme (Queen Mary, University of London, UK)

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English

Routledge
31 October 2025

Performance art; Theatre Studies; Plays & playscripts; European history; Social & cultural history

Series: Audience Research

Laughter, Power, and the Unconscious offers paradigm-breaking insights into the psychological and sociopolitical dimensions of humour and comedy. Based on an innovative audience experiment at Shakespeare's Globe, the authors develop a revolutionary theory of humour as manic defence, challenging Freud's classic formulations while engaging with contemporary humour theories.

The text explores three key domains: firstly, it establishes and evaluates the theory in comparison to Freud's work in Jokes and their Relation to the Unconscious, while positioning it within major humour frameworks; secondly, it demonstrates the theory's application to Renaissance comedy, examining characters like Malvolio from Twelfth Night alongside stock figures of cuckolds and madmen in both English theatrical traditions and commedia dell'arte; finally, it investigates the theory's broader sociopolitical relevance by analysing war-related humour and racist jokes while addressing comedy's dual capacity to both challenge and reinforce existing power structures.

This volume will appeal to the scholars and students of theatre and performance studies, psychology, literary theory and cultural studies interested in the sociopolitical implications of humour.

By: Maria Grazia Turri, Bridget Escolme (Queen Mary, University of London, UK)
Imprint: Routledge
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm,
Weight: 670g
ISBN: 9780367633172
ISBN 10: 0367633175
Series: Audience Research
Pages: 262
Publication Date: 31 October 2025
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Maria Grazia Turri is Senior Lecturer in Creative Arts and Mental Health at Queen Mary University of London, UK. She is a former psychiatrist and psychoanalytic psychotherapist. Bridget Escolme is Professor of Theatre and Performance at Queen Mary University of London. She is co-convenor of Queen Mary’s MSc Creative Arts and Mental Health.