Subversion and Survival

A Study of Humour as an Integral Value in African American Folklore.

Abstract

Humour is deemed as a universal value transcending social, cultural, economic and linguistic cultural human standards of behaviour. Its presence is highly notable and significant in African American Folklore despite the presence of tales depicting bondage, suppression, discrimination and violence. This article analyses such tales collected from oral traditions to establish the role of humour as a tool of subversion, and a mechanism to cope with the atrocities the Coloured Americans were subjected to. It investigates the tales with the assistance of the three classical theories of humour: the superiority theory, the incongruity theory and the relief theory of humour. The theories help in textual analysis of the tales by extracting the element that produces humour and highlighting the psychological condition of the characters. This study outlines how humour is an integral human value and can assist the oppressed to not only survive amidst a brutal social setting but also combat it through wit, laughter and comedy. Establishing the African American character as a humourist, the research suggests that humour is not something the community merely chanced upon, but a trope they used to surpass and withstand the subjugation. The findings highlight the multifaceted nature of humour as a commentary on the social condition, a strengthening of communal bonds, and a celebration of the cultural heritage, thus demonstrating its role as a means of subversion and survival. Ultimately, this paper serves to depict humour as a pivotal human value in African American folklore, and a significant vehicle of turning the tragic into the comic for survival.