A Study on Intertextuality in Verbal Humor

周燕

【Abstract】This paper talks about how intertextuality and its concerned theories can be well applied to the study of humor.Through analysis of specific samples，the paper finds parody，verbal irony and text allusions are effective intertextual means to produce and understand verbal humor.

【Key words】 intertextuality； verbal humor； parody； verbal irony； allusion

Humor pervades our lives.The study of humor is also a fascinating area.Intertextuality，first invented by Kristeva in 1966，believes that no text is isolated，but should be studied with connections to other texts.To analyze verbal humor from the perspective of intertextuality is a way less travelled.The objective of this paper is to analyze the formation and understanding of verbal humor from the perspective of intertextuality.

1.Definition and classification of humor

There exists no single definition of humor that can satisfy all researchers.Attardo（1996） defines humor as a technical term covering anything that isperceived as funny，amusing，or language.Raskin（1985） proposes to consider humor in the least restricted sense，which is interchangeable with “the funny”.Scholars also tend to categorize humor based on various criteria.Ritchie （2004） divided humor into two types： verbal humor and nonverbal humor.This paper mainly deals with verbal humor.

Definition of Intertextuality

Intertextuality derives from the Latin word intertexto，meaning to intermingle while weaving.It has been argued that the origins of intertextuality should trace back to the Platos theory of imitation.Much later，Mikhail M.Bakhtin proposed the term dialogism，and applied it to the understanding and analysis of texts and cultures.Finally，it is Julia Kristeva，the French poststructuralist，who first coined this term and produced intertextual theory in the late 1960s.It is believed that the recognition and interpretation of intertextuality relies on readers shared knowledge and recognition of intertextual cues，including parody，verbal irony and allusions in the text.

2.Intertextual Analysis of Verbal Humor

2.1.Parody.Parody is defined as a humorous，satirical imitation of a person，event or serious work of literature.It is easy to recognize the close relationship between parody and verbal humor，for parody itself is already amusing.Here is an example：

To lie or not to lie — a doctors dilemma.

This is a sentence-level parody，imitating the famous lines from Shakespeare，“to be or not to be — that is a question”.It will be easy for a well-educated person to get the humor by connecting this sentence with the original.But those who have never heard of Shakespeare will make no sense of it.So this kind of humor requires shared knowledge.

Thus，intertextuality plays two roles，a way to create humor and a means of comprehending humor.In the case above，as you can see，it is intertextuality that generates the amusing effect，and later，it will be comprehended by the readers who are able to recognize it.And this rule can also be applied to other more examples.

2.2.Verbal irony.Irony is an implied discrepancy between what is said and what is meant.As Sperber and Wilson say，“It is an interpretation of a thought of someone other than the speaker （or of the speaker in the past）”.That is to say，an echoing of a stated attitude can serve as verbal irony，thus possessing distinct intertextual nature.Here is an example：

Peter： Its a lovely day for a picnic.

[They go for a picnic and it rains.]

Mary （Sarcastically）： Its a lovely day for a picnic，indeed.

In this context，by connecting these two utterances with the speakers real intentions，readers can easily get the humor.So through verbal irony，intertextuality also plays two roles，creating humor and helping readers to understand humor.

However，compared with humor created by parody，humor realized by verbal irony is relatively easier for readers to comprehend because of its low requirement for shared knowledge.That is to say，this type of humor is formed within the text.

2.3.Text allusion.Allusion is a brief reference，explicit or indirect，to a person，place，or event，or to another literary work or passage.It can also be found in verbal humor.Here is an example：

I hope my blind date wont be another Medusa.[4]，p.34

One can be hardly amused if he does not know who Medusa is.In this example，the speaker compares a bad consequence of the blind date to Medusa，indicating that the person he or she is going to date with might be rather ugly in appearance，or the date will probably fail once the two people meet with each other.

Here，intertextuality presented by the text allusions still plays the two roles mentioned before.Like the parody，text allusions in verbal humor also require readers shared knowledge，without which，humor is something impossible.

3.Conclusion

Humor is such a complex phenomenon that one can hardly give a full picture of it by a single attempt.Intertextuality serves as a new way to understand verbal humor.This paper finds intertextuality can be well applied to the analysis of verbal humor.The author believes that，with more sound theoretical support and more specific sample analysis，far more fruitful achievements will be made in the future.

References：

[1]刘金明.互文性的语篇语言学研究.上海外国语大学，2006.

[2]刘乃实.言语幽默的图论模型.上海交通大学出版社，2008.