Humor's Unfunny Side

The debate over humor's virtues has acquired an important )lace in contemporary social science. A balanced picture }f humor is obtained only if we can compare its virtues with its drawbacks. This article attempts to map humor's irawbacks by characterizing what types of people are 1urt by humor, those who do not perceive humor's point, snd others who are unfamiliar with the material's cultural :ontext, a necessary condition for its understanding.