Gestalt-theoretical Joke Analyses

5. Summary

It has been shown that (verbal) jokes, as they are presented to us in the public media (now also on the Internet), differ not only in terms of content and form, but also in terms of structural features, which are the starting point and prerequisite for cognitive processing by the joke consumer. Such joke characteristics can lead to a new structure and restructuring, figure-ground inversions or system and whole references also to phenomena such as contradiction and contrast, closure, errors of thought, etc. In the majority of cases, it plays a role how well a piece of information, usually the punch line, fits in with the content of the joke. This can involve the structuring of various related features or the change to a reference system (in a broad sense). The extent of the fit, i.e. the prägnanz-aspect, seems to vary slightly depending on structural circumstances. However, it usually plays a role. Also in jokes, for example, in which contrast and contradiction are expressed, because this involves maximum difference. The criterion of fit seems to be less clear in jokes about different groups (Welsh, Scottish, Irish), unless you think that certain characteristics (such as stupidity and aggression) are part of the stereotype of the group.