2016 Fiscal Year Research-status Report
Constructing a Theory of Laughter Founded on Deleuzian and Non-Western Approaches to Subjective Temporality and Concepts of the Self
| Project/Area Number |
15K01992
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| Research Institution | Nagoya University |
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Principal Investigator |
Weeks Mark 名古屋大学, 教養教育院, 特任准教授 (70514222)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
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| Keywords | laughter / theory / attitudes / humor / Deleuze |
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| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
A paper titled “The Enigma of Solitary Laughter” was submitted to the European Journal of Humour Resarch in March 2016 and was accepted for publication, being published in December 2016.
Further progress was made in gathering survey data. Although the number of additional subjects was relatively small (19 subjects), the non-Japanese respondents have helped to expand the cross-cultural nature of the sample.
By giving a paper at the International Society for Humor Studies at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland on June 30, 2016 I was able to gain useful feedback on my work on solitary laughter and suggestions for extension of the project. I have not been able to gather collaborators from other countries to help with genuine cross-cultural surveying.
With the help of a German colleague I began a study of the German novel Steppenwolf by Herman Hesse as this work thematizes the subject of laughter. I began studying this novel in relation to the history of European philosophy on the subject of laughter and specifically the writing on the subject by Immanuel Kant, Arthur Schopenhauer and Friedrich Nietzsche. The main aim has been to see if it is possible to discern a degree of cultural specificity and cross-cultural difference in the conceptualization of laughter.
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| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
2: Research has progressed on the whole more than it was originally planned.
Reason
In order to attain further data I am continuing to undertake social surveying on questions related to the experience of laughter and attitudes toward it. At the same time, I continue to analyze the philosophical writing of Deleuze, exploring how Deleuze’s concepts could be usefully employed to conceptualize the experience of laughter in ways that might accommodate diverse views across cultures. The central concepts are “affect” and “nomadic thought.” However, I have not been able to gather collaborators from other countries to help with genuine cross-cultural surveying.
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| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
In order to disseminate results from the research so far, to receive essential feedback and to make contacts to facilitate the development of the project, a paper titled “The Queerest Comic Corruption: Laughing Alone” has been proposed to, and accepted by, the Annual Deleuze Studies Conference to be held in Toronto, Canada in June 2017. I aim to use feedback from this conference to produce a further article on solitary laughter, this time with an emphasis on the connections to Deleuze’s use of Spinoza’s notion of “affect” as well as the concept of “nomadic thought.” I will continue to attempt to gather collaborators from other countries in order to gather sufficient data for a rigorous cross-cultural survey.
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| Causes of Carryover |
The entirety of the budget will be spent on a flight ticket, accommodation and living allowance to attend the Annual Deleuze Studies Conference to be held in Toronto, Canada from June 19 to June 21, 2017 where I will present a paper and gather input from colleagues working in this research area.
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| Expenditure Plan for Carryover Budget |
The budget for the coming year is 300, 000 yen. The entirety will be spent on a flight ticket, accommodation and living allowance to attend the Annual Deleuze Studies Conference to be held in Toronto, Canada from June 19 to June 21, 2017.
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