Wisecracks: Humor and Morality in Everyday Life

Shoemaker (Responsibility from the Margins), a professor of philosophy at Cornell University, offers a scrupulous dissection of “knockabout humorous exchanges” that derive their humor partly from such “interpersonal features” as the awkward reactions of those being teased. Distinguishing such “wisecracks” from “canned jokes,” which rely purely on semantics, Shoemaker teases out how humor fueled by “deception” can have unexpected benefits (being made to “look foolish” can strengthen one’s critical thinking skills), suggests that mockery “primarily” works when it targets something specific to an individual rather than a general stereotype (good impersonators highlight the “little glimpse of universally recognizable truth” in their subject), and muses on whether narcissism and other personality disorders deflect moral blame from those who make hurtful jibes. The latter discussion leads Shoemaker to the self-admittedly “topsy-turvy” conclusion that, if Donald Trump suffers from narcissistic personality disorder, the former president “may not be the appropriate target of blame” for his 2015 mockery of disabled reporter Serge Kovaleski, even if “what he did was immoral.” Though not every argument lands, readers will be intrigued by Shoemaker’s methodical attempts to drill down on the complex interplay between humor and morality, without losing sight of the joy inherent in his topic. A final chapter on improving one’s own sense of humor rounds out the smart, witty analysis. This delivers. (May)