We are a group of scholars from universities across Europe with an interest in the study of humour. The core team of this project consists of people who are not only affiliated with the universities united in UNA Europa, but are also members of the International Society for Humor Studies. This society unites scholars from many disciplines and countries in the study of humour: a form of non-serious communication that amuses and provokes laughter, but that can also have serious consequences for social relations, individual and social well-being.
We have invited fellow humour scholars from across Europe to join us in analysing humour in the European public sphere. As the line-up of contributors shows, for us Europe is more than the European Union. Instead, it is the cultural and geographic area that, for better or for worse, is united around a set of idea(l)s.
This project foregrounds one such idea(l) that we particularly like: the public sphere. The public sphere is a normative ideal: in open societies, people of all walks of life should be able to come together to openly, freely, and respectfully discuss public issues. Although in original statements, the public sphere seemed a rather serious (may we say: dreary and dull) affair involving white men in coffee houses, subsequent interpretations have suggested that the public sphere should encompass people and voices from different backgrounds. Importantly: a healthy public sphere should encompass and embrace many modes of communication. This includes emotions of various kinds, artistic expression, non-verbal (e.g., visual, musical) expression, play, but most importantly: humour, including wordplay, mockery, satire, irony, wit, parody, and all forms of communication that aims to make us laugh and think at the same time.