Announcement: Joint Workshop on Humour and Grapevine Breeding

Announcement: Joint Workshop on Humour and Grapevine Breeding

Dear friends,

Many of you have pointed out that a Google search for “ISHS” yields the International Society for Horticultural Science as the first result. In the spirit of interdisciplinary collaboration, we decided to contact the fellow ISHS-ers at the Horticultural society and invite them to Estonia. As a result, we are proud to announce that a joint workshop on Humour and Grapevine Breeding will take place during the ISHS (as in “humour studies”) conference in Tallinn. The workshop will last throughout the conference, starting with a ceremonial grape seed planting in Tallinn University’s yard and culminating in a wine tasting session on the evening of June 29.

The details of the workshop and the list of organisers will be announced soon. Stay tuned!

Weekly Featured Panel: In Memoriam Christie Davies

Weekly Featured Panel: In Memoriam Christie Davies

Today, we would like to introduce the final featured panel of ISHS2018. It is dedicated to the late Christie Davies, an outstanding sociologist who studied, shared, and made myriads of jokes. Panelists are invited to reflect on Christie’s vast contribution to humour studies: ethnic jokes, comparative studies, and other social aspects of humour. You can read the full description of the panel here.

If you haven’t already, we also invite you to check out the special issue of the open-access European Journal of Humour Research dedicated to the memory of Christie. Follow this link to access the full-text articles.

And if you are a student or a recent PhD graduate, there is still time to apply for the Christie Davies award!

Weekly Featured Panel: Humour and Intertextuality

Weekly Featured Panel: Humour and Intertextuality

This week we would like to invite you to reflect upon the links between humour and intertextuality. If you are interested in discovering and discussing them, consider joining the panel titled “Humor and Intertextuality: Looking for Humor in-between Texts and Targets”!

Reminder: Two Weeks until the Deadline!

Reminder: Two Weeks until the Deadline!

Attention! Just 14 days left until the ISHS 2018 submission deadline! If you haven’t already, read the call for proposals, come up with an idea, put together an abstract and submit it via our registration form. See you in Tallinn!

Weekly Featured Panel: Tourism and Humour

Weekly Featured Panel: Tourism and Humour

In the global age, tourism has become one of the most popular hobbies and an industry whose rapid growth continues despite political and economic setbacks. It is no surprise that tourism serves as both an environment for and a target for humour. This panel is an invitation to discuss, among other things, how humour contributes to the tourist experience, in what way the tourism industry uses humour, and how to do fieldwork on tourism and humour. Read the full abstract here and join the conversation!

Weekly Featured Panel: Asking the Audiences – Laughter in…

Weekly Featured Panel: Asking the Audiences – Laughter in Performance

Despite the centrality of the audience in comedy performances, audience research is not common in the field due to the difficulties involved. The lack of analysis into reactions to comedy/humour is a vital missing component in the discussions of comedy as affect and as social force. Our panel “Asking the Audiences: Laughter in Performance” strives to bridge this gap. Read the full abstract here and join us for this noble cause!

Weekly Featured Panel: Humour, Horror and Violence

Weekly Featured Panel: Humour, Horror and Violence

Why is violence sometimes funny? What is “circus humour” and what makes it so uncanny? Where is the boundary between the lighthearted and the grotesque?

This week we are introducing the panel titled Humour and Violence: Schlock Horror, Pillow Punches and the Circus — and hope you are as intrigued by it as we are!

Read the full description of the panel here.

Weekly Featured Panel: Humour, Gender and Sexuality

Weekly Featured Panel: Humour, Gender and Sexuality

Dear friends,

Following increasing public attention towards (and heated debates about) the issues of gender and sexuality, we would like to showcase our panel relevantly titled “Humor, Gender and Sexuality”. The panelists (led by Delia Chiaro and Giuseppe Balirano) will discuss the social functions of humour and its impact on in-group representations.

If you would like to join the panel, submit your proposal here. (If you would like to submit to another panel, you are of course welcome to do so as well!)

Weekly Featured Panel: Humour and (the Lack of) Limitations

Panel of the week: Humour and (the Lack of) Limitations

Dear friends,

This week we would like encourage you to approach humour from a philosopher’s perspective. The panel titled “Humour and (the lack of) limitations” will guide you from post-apocaliptic ridicule to a perfect sense of humour and stimulate the discussion on how different types of limitations shape humour.

Also, don’t miss the last opportunity to save on the registration fee: the early-bird registration deadline is Thursday, February 15. Submit your abstract and register here.

Weekly Featured Panel: Humour and Literature

Weekly Featured Panel: Humour and Literature

Dear friends,

This week we will be “Laughing Between the Lines” and encouraging you to participate in the panel on Humour and Literature! The panel will focus on often neglected aspects of humour in literature and literary specificities of humour.

You can find the full description of the panel here. Also, can we interest you in a little limerick? (This will surely be nostalgic for those amongst us who were there at ISHS’16 in Dublin.)