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Humour and the Unacceptable in Neil Hamburger’s Routine

Derrin, Daniel

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Authors

Daniel Derrin



Abstract

This paper addresses the comic routine of Australian born U.S. comedian Gregg Turkington’s alter-ego, ‘Neil Hamburger’, from the perspective of Aristotle’s ancient conception of the risible as a species of the unacceptable, or the unseemly. In doing so, it explores two thresholds of acceptability, subjective and social, which are relevant to an understanding of Hamburger’s comic style. The paper argues that Hamburger’s style willfully violates those thresholds, risking the audience’s laughter, and yet working towards the visualization of a less normative kind of ‘unseemliness’ that underlies Hamburger’s politics: reverence for celebrity and the sacred.

Citation

Derrin, D. (2014). Humour and the Unacceptable in Neil Hamburger’s Routine. PORTAL Journal of Multidisciplinary International Studies, 11(2), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.5130/portal.v11i2.3207

Journal Article Type Article
Publication Date Jul 1, 2014
Deposit Date Oct 8, 2015
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal PORTAL Journal of Multidisciplinary International Studies
Publisher UTS ePRESS
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 11
Issue 2
Pages 1-17
DOI https://doi.org/10.5130/portal.v11i2.3207

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