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A copy that has been read, but remains in good condition, book shows minimal singns of cover wear, all pages are clean from highlighting and handwriting. A copy that has been read, but remains in good condition, book shows minimal singns of cover wear, all pages are clean from highlighting and handwriting. See less
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The Joke and Its Relation to the Unconscious (Penguin Classics) Paperback – June 24, 2003

by Sigmund Freud (Author), Joyce Crick (Translator), John Carey (Contributor)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 68 ratings
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Why do we laugh? The answer, argued Freud in this groundbreaking study of humor, is that jokes, like dreams, satisfy our unconscious desires. The Joke and Its Relation to the Unconscious explains how jokes provide immense pleasure by releasing us from our inhibitions and allowing us to express sexual, aggressive, playful, or cynical instincts that would otherwise remain hidden. In elaborating this theory, Freud brings together a rich collection of puns, witticisms, one-liners, and anecdotes, which, as Freud shows, are a method of giving ourselves away.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
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Previous page
  1. Print length
    229 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Penguin Publishing Group
  4. Publication date
    June 24, 2003
  5. Grade level
    12 and up
  6. Reading age
    18 years and up
  7. Dimensions
    5.06 x 0.6 x 7.72 inches
  8. ISBN-10
    0142437441
  9. ISBN-13
    978-0142437445
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) was born in Moravia and lived in Vienna between the ages of four and eighty-two. In 1938 Hitler's invasion of Austria forced him to seek asylum in London, where he died the following year. Freud's career began with several years of brilliant work on the anatomy and physiology of the nervous system. He was almost thirty when, after a period of study under Charcot in Paris, his interests first turned to psychology, and another ten years of clinical work in Vienna (at first in collaboration with Breuer, an older colleague) saw the birth of his creation: psychoanalysis. This began simply as a method of treating neurotic patients by investigating their minds, but it quickly grew into an accumulation of knowledge about the workings of the mind in general, whether sick or healthy. Freud was thus able to demonstrate the normal development of the sexual instinct in childhood and, largely on the basis of an examination of dreams, arrived at his fundamental discovery of the unconscious forces that influence our everyday thoughts and actions. Freud's life was uneventful, but his ideas have shaped not only many specialist disciplines, but the whole intellectual climate of the last half-century.

Joyce Crick was for many years a senior lecturer in German at University College London. In 2000, she was awarded the Schlegel Tieck Prize for her translation of Freud's The Interpretation of Dreams for Oxford University Press.

John Carey is an emeritus professor of English at Oxford, a fellow of the British Academy, and chief book reviewer for the London Sunday Times.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin Publishing Group (June 24, 2003)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 229 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0142437441
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0142437445
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 18 years and up
  • Grade level ‏ : ‎ 12 and up
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 7.7 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.06 x 0.6 x 7.72 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 68 ratings

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  1. Sigmund Freud

    Sigmund Freud

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Sigmund Freud was born in 1856 in Moravia; between the ages of four and eighty-two his home was in Vienna: in 1938 Hitler's invasion of Austria forced him to seek asylum in London, where he died in the following year.

    His career began with several years of brilliant work on the anatomy and physiology of the nervous system. He was almost thirty when, after a period of study under Charcot in Paris, his interests first turned to psychology, and another ten years of clinical work in Vienna (at first in collaboration with Breuer, an older colleague) saw the birth of his creation, psychoanalysis. This began simply as a method of treating neurotic patients by investigating their minds, but it quickly grew into an accumulation of knowledge about the workings of the mind in general, whether sick or healthy. Freud was thus able to demonstrate the normal development of the sexual instinct in childhood and, largely on the basis of an examination of dreams, arrived at his fundamental discovery of the unconscious forces that influence our everyday thoughts and actions.

    Freud's life was uneventful, but his ideas have shaped not only many specialist disciplines, but the whole intellectual climate of the last half-century.

    See more on the author's page
  2. Joyce Crick

    Joyce Crick

    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

    See more on the author's page
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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
68 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Galfridus
5.0 out of 5 stars Freud presents a very intriguing analysis of verbal jokes, ...
Reviewed in the United States on January 14, 2015
Verified Purchase
Freud presents a very intriguing analysis of verbal jokes, tying them to the unconscious as he previously did in his analysis of dreams. He particularly uses the metaphor of "economy" to characterize overall the process of joke-making, as he posits that the mind uses jokes to lessen psychic "expenditure" by releasing energy through the joke. Especially intriguing is his analysis of "tendentious jokes," which the teller directs aggressively at a third person, in the presence of a second person. I only wish Freud had considered the practical joke as well, though one may extrapolate from his analysis of verbal jokes to ideas about physical, non-verbal jokes--that may discomfit, humiliate, or even harm the victim.
3 people found this helpful
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Charlie 7417
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on August 16, 2017
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Nice gift for a thinking friend.
2 people found this helpful
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Carys
4.0 out of 5 stars How society uses joking.
Reviewed in the United States on November 4, 2014
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A very good insight into joking and its underlying manipulations and uses. The translation made things heavy going though. I will look for it translated by someone else, for comparison.
One person found this helpful
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Yej
1.0 out of 5 stars Needs update
Reviewed in the United States on February 18, 2016
Verified Purchase
Has some good points but a lot of them seem to be based on 19th century views.
What's described as daring and provocative humor is no longer the case. (With comedians like Louis CK talking about baby carcass disposal bag dispensers in malls and what not)
That took away most of the fun, and made reading tedious.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Arbas Ali
4.0 out of 5 stars stunning
Reviewed in India on December 22, 2020
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Arbas Ali
4.0 out of 5 stars stunning
Reviewed in India on December 22, 2020
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One person found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars This is brilliant for anyone who wants to think about reading and/or ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 4, 2017
Verified Purchase
This is brilliant for anyone who wants to think about reading and/or the comic. I don't think that Freud's desperate distinctions (though helpful) between the joke and the comic work that well (he eventually admits this himself, but tries for a restitution of sorts). Psychoanalysis has fallen out of fashion, scientifically, but it is true that many comedians/ comic writers have a great deal of pain, and this provides a possible explanation of it. It also (indirectly) allows for a critique of 'bad' jokes (racist, etc) and how they operate -- showing a joke is not a joke without your complicity -- and insists on a responsibility on the reader's/listener's part (ie, if you enjoy a racist joke, 'I didn't mean it, I'm not really like that' does not help you escape your complicity, at least for that moment, with a certain ideology).
One person found this helpful
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Tijuan M
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 11, 2019
Verified Purchase
Arrived promptly, undamaged and identical to the displayed picture, a very interesting read
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Tijuan M
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 11, 2019
Arrived promptly, undamaged and identical to the displayed picture, a very interesting read
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One person found this helpful
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PINAKI BANERJEE
4.0 out of 5 stars Awesome.. very insightful
Reviewed in India on July 2, 2016
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Awesome ..very insightful..captures deep Human thoughts..
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a ali
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 4, 2015
Verified Purchase
As described and fast delivery, thank you.
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