Papers by Jarno Hietalahti
The European Journal of Humour Research, 2021
This article will analyse the preconditions of sense of humour for artificial intelligence. Can a... more This article will analyse the preconditions of sense of humour for artificial intelligence. Can artificial intelligence have a sense of humour? Is there a difference between human and machine laughter? Some machines already fulfil certain conditions which are associated with the human sense of humour: on the most superficial level machines appear to laugh and produce jokes, and they recognise sarcasm and punchlines, and they can evaluate funniness. In short, artificial intelligence is already able to recognise humour, and reacts to it accordingly. Furthermore, people laugh with humorous machines. However, it is still uncertain whether artificial intelligence can have a sense of humour or not, at least in comparison to a human sense of humour. To build bridges between AI research and philosophy of humour, this article proposes that there are (at least) five notable philosophical issues to be addressed if we are to accept that machines can have a (humanlike) sense of humour. These principles are: 1) worldview, 2) self- consciousness, 3) self-reflection, 4) self-criticism, and 5) losing control.
An Answer to a Question that Cannot Be Answered: A Pragmatist Approach to Viktor Frankl’s and Primo Levi’s Theoretical Perspectives on Humor, 2021
This article offers a pragmatist approach to concentration camp humor, in particular, to Viktor F... more This article offers a pragmatist approach to concentration camp humor, in particular, to Viktor Frankl's and Primo Levi's conceptualizations of humor. They both show how humor does not vanish even in the worst imaginable circumstances. Despite this similarity, it will be argued that their intellectual positions on humor differ significantly. The main difference between the two authors is that according to Frankl, humor is elevating in the middle of suffering, and according to Levi, humor expresses the absurdity of the idea of concentration camps, but this is not necessarily a noble reaction. Through a critical synthesis based on pragmatist philosophy, it will be claimed that humor in concentration camps expresses the human condition in the entirely twisted situation. This phenomenon cannot be understood without considering forms of life, how drastic the changes from the past were, and what people expected from the future, if anything.
This paper was published in The Ultimate Game of Thrones and Philosophy. You Think or Die.
Fromm Forum 22, 2018
In this article, I claim that humor can be a form of social pathology. In opposition to the gener... more In this article, I claim that humor can be a form of social pathology. In opposition to the general humor-affirmative atmosphere, I develop the critical tradition of humor research, and suggest that there is a darker side to fun and laughter. Using insights from Henri Bergson’s theory about laughter and Erich Fromm’s critical social thinking, I formulate a novel theoretical combination which opens up fruitful perspectives on con-temporary humor and its social nature. This empirically motivated conceptual position helps us to understand the role and function of humor and laughter. My conclusion is that parts of the contemporary humor catalogue reflect collective destructive and even death-orientated tendencies. The main argument is that if humor is not in line with humanistic values and is not based on a life-orientated worldview, it is in danger of becoming pathological.
C. P. Martins (Ed.), Comedy for Dinner and Other Dishes (pp. 20-41). Instituto de Estudos Filosóficos (IEF)., 2019
In this chapter, the author will analyze the relationship between humor and power in the light of... more In this chapter, the author will analyze the relationship between humor and power in the light of court jesters (comedians) and sovereign (president). The chapter offers a philosophical perspective on the social significance of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. The theoretical framework is based on C. G. Jung’s theory of the archetypes, and especially on the concepts of the ‘shadow’ and the ‘trickster’
This dissertation focuses on the social philosophy of humor from the viewpoint of Erich Fromm’s c... more This dissertation focuses on the social philosophy of humor from the viewpoint of Erich Fromm’s critical humanistic thinking. The work consists of an introduction and four individual articles. The introduction discusses Fromm’s theories in relation to the phenomenon of humor to provide a basis for the articles. The central aim is to understand the dynamic nature of humor and how it is related to the problem of being a paradoxical creature, that is, a human being. It is claimed that humor has to be analyzed and interpreted in a unique historical and cultural situation. The first article discusses Fromm’s concept of social character to offer a theoretical tool to understand how deeply humor is a
social phenomenon. It is argued that the social character is a crucial component if we are to reach beyond jokes and laughter, and to grasp their deeper social significance. The second article furthers this thought by developing a critical standpoint on the phenomenon of laughing at oneself. It calls into question the prevailing optimism about the capability to ridicule oneself. Following Fromm, it is claimed that humor needs a serious backbone from which the perceived oddities are evaluated. The third article brings forth the debate of humor and
freedom. In opposition to the widely shared idea that humor should be
absolutely free, it is argued that humor cannot be separated from the sphere of humanity, and this basic fact sets the ground for the freedom of humor. Freedom has to be obtained within the limits of humanity. This leads to the notion that it is untenable to claim that we should be always able to laugh at everything. The fourth article elaborates the influence of social circumstances for humor, and the competitive nature of contemporary humor is taken under critical scrutiny. It is argued that humor and laughter reflect the current historical situation and, eventually, ourselves. Therefore, from a humanistic perspective, it is concerning how natural and popular humor competitions appear to be. As a whole, the dissertation is a philosophical study, and it aims more at philosophical understanding than to concrete empirical research
settings. However, the conducted research is empirically inspired philosophy, and thus intimately connected to the living phenomena of humor and laughter.
This article brings Erich Fromm and Theodor W. Adorno back into dialogue by discussing the cultur... more This article brings Erich Fromm and Theodor W. Adorno back into dialogue by discussing the cultural phenomena of humor and laughter based on their theoretical writings. I argue that what is typically considered socially critical humor, like offensive jokes or harsh satire, often fails to meet the preconditions of criticism in the light of Adorno's and Fromm's thinking. Humor, to be socially critical, has to be life-affi rmative and non-positional, and it has to challenge the limits of humor. It is also claimed that in this scope, humor cannot be instrumental.
In this article, I analyze controversial humor and argue that the concept of disobedience is of c... more In this article, I analyze controversial humor and argue that the concept of disobedience is of central importance when evaluating, for instance, harsh or potentially hurtful jokes. Following social critic Erich Fromm (1900– 1980) I claim that disobedience is a dialectic concept: that is, it includes the possibilities both to affirm and to reject. This observation connects humor to other values, and pivotal is how humor is related to the question of what it means to be a human being. Through this insight, I argue that controversial humor may shock and be offensive, or it can be amusing and even have a cathartic effect. In the end, in evaluating humor it is necessary to analyze the values behind humor, that is, what humor obeys and what it disobeys.
Why do people, in certain historical periods, laugh at certain topics, and ridicule certain pheno... more Why do people, in certain historical periods, laugh at certain topics, and ridicule certain phenomena? How do they relate to others with their laughter? If there is a shared passion for mocking the shortcomings of others, where does this striving come from? Why do we insist that humor is always innocent? These are the central social philosophical and psychological questions around Frommian humor research. I suggest that humor should be seen in relation to the total character struc-ture. Or, to put it other way, the way one relates to and perceives humor is actually a character trait.
In this article we argue that freedom of speech should be understood as a social freedom. In the ... more In this article we argue that freedom of speech should be understood as a social freedom. In the public discussion after the Charlie Hebdo attacks, it has often been understood as an absolute right to say anything – to offend, to make a fool of others and of oneself, and to express any opinion regardless of the consequences. We challenge this view and propose that advocating freedom of speech without understanding its social foundations is misleading and counterproductive. Based on the critical social theories of Erich Fromm, Charles Taylor and Axel Honneth, we show that there is an alternative tradition in which freedom is fundamentally rooted in social relations and therefore requires respect for others. We argue that interpreting freedom of speech as a social freedom avoids some of the problems apparent in current discussions. In addition, our position has significant practical consequences on how humour and insults should be understood.
Haastan tässä tekstissä yleisesti jaetun huumoriteoreettisen käsityksen, jonka mukaan huumorin yt... more Haastan tässä tekstissä yleisesti jaetun huumoriteoreettisen käsityksen, jonka mukaan huumorin ytimessä oleva havainnon ja odotuksen välinen epäsuhta täytyy ratkaista huvitusta aiheuttavalla tavalla. Frankfurtin koulukunnan kriittiseen teoriaan, ja erityisesti Erich Frommin ja Theodor W. Adornon ajatteluun, perustuen esitän, että humoristinen ristiriita voi jäädä myös elämään ratkaisemattomana eikä sen välttämättä tarvitse aiheuttaa riemua. Tällä kriittisellä täydennyksellä on merkittäviä implikaatioita muun muassa huumorin seurausten ymmärtämisen suhteen.
This article discusses the philosophy of humor, with a focus on the
phenomenon of laughing at one... more This article discusses the philosophy of humor, with a focus on the
phenomenon of laughing at oneself. The particular aim of this paper is to
show that laughing at oneself is not as straightforwardly good or positive a
matter as philosophers of humor have stated. I examine this cultural
phenomenon in the light of Erich Fromm’s thinking.
Artikkelissa tarkastellaan huumorintajua suhteessa Aristoteleen hyve-etiikkaan.
Toistuvasti huumorin väitetään koettelevan rajoja. Tässä artikkelissa kyseenalaistan käsityksen s... more Toistuvasti huumorin väitetään koettelevan rajoja. Tässä artikkelissa kyseenalaistan käsityksen siitä, että huumorin tehtävä olisi rikkoa kaikkia mahdollisia rajoja kaikin mahdollisin keinoin. Huumorinkin on lopulta pohjauduttava johonkin.
Näkökulma-kirjoitus Prisma Studion "Suomen hauskin vitsi 2014" -jakson yhteydessä.
Graduantologiaa varten tehty artikkeli pro gradu -tutkielman pohjalta.
Pro gradu -tutkielma (2010)
Talks by Jarno Hietalahti
Kirjakerho-ohjelmassa Jani Tanskasen haastateltavana Huumorin skaalat -teoksen tiimoilta. Oma osu... more Kirjakerho-ohjelmassa Jani Tanskasen haastateltavana Huumorin skaalat -teoksen tiimoilta. Oma osuuteni ohjelmassa alkaa noin 2 minuutin kohdalta. Linkki Yle Areenaan:
http://areena.yle.fi/1-3110815
Presentation in "Understanding Charlie: New Perspectives on Contemporary Citizenship after Charli... more Presentation in "Understanding Charlie: New Perspectives on Contemporary Citizenship after Charlie Hebdo", Belfast. Our claim is that freedom of speech should be understood as a social freedom. Paper based on the critical theories of Erich Fromm, Charles Taylor and Axel Honneth.
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Papers by Jarno Hietalahti
social phenomenon. It is argued that the social character is a crucial component if we are to reach beyond jokes and laughter, and to grasp their deeper social significance. The second article furthers this thought by developing a critical standpoint on the phenomenon of laughing at oneself. It calls into question the prevailing optimism about the capability to ridicule oneself. Following Fromm, it is claimed that humor needs a serious backbone from which the perceived oddities are evaluated. The third article brings forth the debate of humor and
freedom. In opposition to the widely shared idea that humor should be
absolutely free, it is argued that humor cannot be separated from the sphere of humanity, and this basic fact sets the ground for the freedom of humor. Freedom has to be obtained within the limits of humanity. This leads to the notion that it is untenable to claim that we should be always able to laugh at everything. The fourth article elaborates the influence of social circumstances for humor, and the competitive nature of contemporary humor is taken under critical scrutiny. It is argued that humor and laughter reflect the current historical situation and, eventually, ourselves. Therefore, from a humanistic perspective, it is concerning how natural and popular humor competitions appear to be. As a whole, the dissertation is a philosophical study, and it aims more at philosophical understanding than to concrete empirical research
settings. However, the conducted research is empirically inspired philosophy, and thus intimately connected to the living phenomena of humor and laughter.
phenomenon of laughing at oneself. The particular aim of this paper is to
show that laughing at oneself is not as straightforwardly good or positive a
matter as philosophers of humor have stated. I examine this cultural
phenomenon in the light of Erich Fromm’s thinking.
¨
http://hybrislehti.net/hybris-22012/%C3%A4%C3%A4rimm%C3%A4ist%C3%A4-hauskaa
Talks by Jarno Hietalahti
http://areena.yle.fi/1-3110815
social phenomenon. It is argued that the social character is a crucial component if we are to reach beyond jokes and laughter, and to grasp their deeper social significance. The second article furthers this thought by developing a critical standpoint on the phenomenon of laughing at oneself. It calls into question the prevailing optimism about the capability to ridicule oneself. Following Fromm, it is claimed that humor needs a serious backbone from which the perceived oddities are evaluated. The third article brings forth the debate of humor and
freedom. In opposition to the widely shared idea that humor should be
absolutely free, it is argued that humor cannot be separated from the sphere of humanity, and this basic fact sets the ground for the freedom of humor. Freedom has to be obtained within the limits of humanity. This leads to the notion that it is untenable to claim that we should be always able to laugh at everything. The fourth article elaborates the influence of social circumstances for humor, and the competitive nature of contemporary humor is taken under critical scrutiny. It is argued that humor and laughter reflect the current historical situation and, eventually, ourselves. Therefore, from a humanistic perspective, it is concerning how natural and popular humor competitions appear to be. As a whole, the dissertation is a philosophical study, and it aims more at philosophical understanding than to concrete empirical research
settings. However, the conducted research is empirically inspired philosophy, and thus intimately connected to the living phenomena of humor and laughter.
phenomenon of laughing at oneself. The particular aim of this paper is to
show that laughing at oneself is not as straightforwardly good or positive a
matter as philosophers of humor have stated. I examine this cultural
phenomenon in the light of Erich Fromm’s thinking.
¨
http://hybrislehti.net/hybris-22012/%C3%A4%C3%A4rimm%C3%A4ist%C3%A4-hauskaa
http://areena.yle.fi/1-3110815