Miss Johnson “Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man.” -William Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet III.i AKA: What’s so Punny? !

Once a Pun a Time …

Pun: - a joke “that results from multiple word meanings or rhyming sounds” (Allen et al, 2011). -play on words According to Joseph Addison: “Having pursued the history of a pun, from its original to its downfall, I shall here define it to be a conceit arising from the use of two words that agree in the sound, but differ in the sense” (Addison, 1888) Homophones: -words that sound the same but have different meanings A DEFINITION Photo Credit: [A Rest] pinterest retrieved on 2/14/2015 from pinterest.

There are four main types of puns: -Antanaclasis -Syllepsis -Paronomasia, and -Asteismus Don’t worry, you won’t need to know these names; just recognize that they all are considered types of puns! PUNS! Photo Credit: [Ah!] pinteret retrieved on 2/14/2015 from pinterest.

When a single speaker says the same word twice and changes its meaning the second time. This usually only happens when the same word has multiple meanings. For example: From Henry V, “To England will I steal, and there I’ll steal” (Hope, 2011). ANTANACLASIS

When a single speaker says a single word but two meanings are intended. This usually only happens when a word has multiple meanings. For example: From Romeo and Juliet, “Being but heavy, I will bear the light.” SYLLEPSIS

When one or more speakers repeat say two words that sounds the same but are “not pure homophones” (Hope, 2011). For example: (Cymbeline, ) “Out, sword, and to a sore purpose!” (Hope, 2011) PARONOMASIA

When a second speaker deliberately shifts the meaning of a statement (Hope, 2011). For Example: (Cymbeline, ) CLOTENWould he had been one of my rank! SECOND LORD (aside) To have smelled like a fool. (Hope, 2011) ASTEISMUS

Why did Shakespeare use so many puns and jokes?

Today, puns are often considered one of the lowest forms of jokes. However, in Elizabethan times, language and the ability to use wit to create word play was seen as a “divine gift” that distinguished “humanity from, and elevating it above, the rest of creation” (Hope, 2011). As an aspect of Elizabethan culture, word play was “a sign of intelligence and social engagement” (Hope, 2011). Individuals of society were expected to be able to and participate in word play in order to prove not just intelligence but social status. ELIZABETHAN REASONING'S Photo Credit: [Battle of Wits] pinteret retrieved on 2/14/2015 from pinterest

The problem today is that we no longer appreciate the art of language and word play in the way that they did. Therefore, Shakespeare’s plays, which are full of these jokes and puns, are no longer as easily accessible to the audience. This is a “far greater block to understanding Shakespeare’s language than the relatively minor changes in semantics and grammar” (Hope, 2011). ELIZABETHAN REASONING’S Photo Credit: [Wise and Fool] pinterest retrieved on 2/14/2015 from pinterest

Photo Credit: [Door Handles] Pinterest retrieved on 3/3/2015 from pinterest.com

1.Identify what the pun is. 2.Define both aspects of the words 3.Explain why it is funny 4.Judge on a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 being the funniest), how funny this pun is NOW IT’S YOUR TURN

Addison, J. (1888). The Works of Joseph Addison. G. Bell Publishing, Indiana University. Retrieved from Google books. Allen, J., et al. (2008). McDougal Little Literature. Evanston, IL: McDougal Little. Hope, J. (2010). The New Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Photo Credit: [Old paper] pinterest retrieved on 2/15/2015 from etsy.com Photo Credit: [Star] pixabay retrieved on 2/16/2015 from pixabay.com REFERENCES