A cultural analysis of humor: David Lodge's Campus Trilogy in the postmodern context

Even if there is no conclusive definition or a fully comprehensive theory of humor, it is a very common and effective tool in literature. As one of the most prominent satirists, David Lodge expertly uses humor to present the distrait situation of academy. This study analyzes Lodge's unique presentation of humor through applying various approaches and theories to Campus Trilogy. This study looks at the humor of Campus Trilogy from a postmodern cultural perspective. An extensive research has been carried out to provide a different perspective on humor and the trilogy. Firstly, Veatch's Benign Violation Theory (BVT) was observed in 'Changing Places'. Secondly, carnivalesque elements of 'Small World' was analyzed. Lastly, Baldwin's Scholastikos was handled within the context of 'Nice Work'. Even though the analyses of the three books under cultural humor seem to be irrelevant to each other, which is an expected outcome considering the scope of Lodge's campus trilogy, they are complementary parts of cultural theory. This study aims to develop a new understanding of cultural humor, which can be a topic for further research beneficial for understanding the dynamics of humor better.