Week # 9 - March 10, 2011

 My culture, not yours!
Ethnic humor: its nature and functions. Popularity and demise. Part 1.

Diversity focus: Defining ethnicity, exploring self-identity and identifying common non-dominant groups traditionally targeted by humorous material in the U.S.
• Origins of different ethnic humors.
• Ethnic humor in the U.S.: why specific groups are targeted and when?
• Minorities in focus: the so-called Jewish and "Negro" humor.
•Others: ethnic groups -- "going in and out of fashion" (e.g., Polish, Italian, Mexican humor).

Readings for Week 9 & 10:
Apte, Mahadev L.: Humor, Ethnicity, and Intergroup Relations. In Humor and Laughter. An Anthropological Approach. Cornell University Press. 1985. Pp.108-148.
Davis, Christie: Who Gets Called Stupid? In Ethnic Humor. Indiana University Press. 1996. Pp. 41-83.
Ziv, Avner: Humor in Israel. In National Styles of Humor. Edited by Avner Ziv. Greenwood Press. 1988. Pp. 113-132.