| Type of joke | Rhetorical device |
|---|---|
| Target of joke | Romans |
Ancient Roman jokes, as described by Cicero and Quintilian, are best employed as a rhetorical device.[1] Many of them are apparently taken from real-life trials conducted by famous advocates, such as Cicero.[citation needed] Jokes were also found scrawled upon washroom walls of Pompeii as graffiti.[2] Romans sought laughter by attending comic plays (such as those of Plautus) and mimes (such as those of Publilius Syrus). Jokes from these sources usually depended on sexual themes.[3] Cicero believe that humour ought to be based upon "ambiguity, the unexpected, wordplay, understatement, irony, ridicule, silliness, and pratfalls".[3] Roman jokes also depended on certain stock characters and stereotypes, especially regarding foreigners,[4] as can be seen within Plautus' Poenulus.
Roman culture, which was heavily influenced by the Greeks, had also been in conversation with Greek humour.[1]
- ^ a b Milnor, Kristina (1 October 2015). "Review of: Laughter in Ancient Rome: On Joking, Tickling, and Cracking Up. Sather classical lectures, 71". Bryn Mawr Classical Review. Archived from the original on September 9, 2020 – via Bryn Mawr Classical Review.
- ^ Killgrove, Kristina (October 4, 2016). "Scatological Graffiti Was The Ancient Roman Version Of Yelp And Twitter". Forbes. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022.
- ^ a b Mount, Harry (June 7, 2014). "What made Romans LOL? - The Spectator". The Spectator. Archived from the original on July 8, 2022.
- ^ Flood, Alison (13 March 2009). "Classic gags discovered in ancient Roman joke book". The Guardian. Archived from the original on October 3, 2021 – via www.theguardian.com.
© MMXXIII Rich X Search. We shall prevail. All rights reserved. Rich X Search