HUMOR THEORY AND RABELAIS

A psychological model is presented for the analysis of comic literatur e. Two dimensions and their interactions are defined: the aggressive/a ffiliative and the nonsense/incongruity-resolution. When applied to Ra belais' Gargantua and Pantagruel, this model reveals powerful affiliat ive devices that frequently resolve incongruity and can he very creati ve. Aggression and nonsense, however, also play a role in Rabelais' hu mor. According to the model, his success as a comic wr iter is the res ult of his ability to create humor which may be defined by all combina tions of these dimensions: Rabelais is not just Rabelaisian.