Laughing Matters, a Longman Topics Reader

Laughing Matters showcases how a range of contemporary writers including Jon Stewart and David Sedaris craft persuasive arguments, using humor to make their case while entertaining the reader.

Many cultural commentators note that we live in an age of comedy.  Staples of comic rhetoric-irony, sarcasm, and various forms of lampoon and caricature-have become dominant forms...
More Description

Laughing Matters showcases how a range of contemporary writers including Jon Stewart and David Sedaris craft persuasive arguments, using humor to make their case while entertaining the reader.

Many cultural commentators note that we live in an age of comedy.  Staples of comic rhetoric-irony, sarcasm, and various forms of lampoon and caricature-have become dominant forms of public discourse, readily available through both traditional print forms and the electronic medis that drive public culture.  Contemporary comedy helps define public issues and delivers critical perspectives on courses of action, judgments on the morality and effectiveness of policy decisions, and praise and blame for elected leaders.  Given this cultural moment, a guide to analyzing how comic arguments are made-and to crafting such arguments using the rhetorical strategies particular to comedy-seems timely.