I said of laughter, “It is mad,” and of pleasure, “What use is it?”
—Book of Ecclesiastes, 225 BC
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Quotes
Jokes are grievances.
—Marshall McLuhan, 1969No man ever distinguished himself who could not bear to be laughed at.
—Maria Edgeworth, 1809A joke is at most a temporary rebellion against virtue, and its aim is not to degrade the human being but to remind him that he is already degraded.
—George Orwell, 1945Comedy, like sodomy, is an unnatural act.
—Marty Feldman, 1969