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F ancisco Yus: Humou and Rele ance. Ams e dam: John Benjamins, 2016,
367 pp. ISBN: 978-90-272-0231-4
Humou has cons an ly in igued schola s and has been ex ensi ely analysed
om disciplines as a ied as an h opology, sociology, psychology, neu oscience
o linguis ics. Wi hin his, i has ecei ed due a en ion om discou se and
con e sa ional analys s, seman icis s, semio icians o p agma is s, o example.
Resea che s ha e looked in o i s mani old mani es a ions and a wide a ay o i s
ascina ing, bu o en complex cha ac e is ics. Se e al models and heo ies ha e
been p oposed o accoun o his e e -p esen and ubiqui ous phenomenon –
su ice o men ion he Seman ic Sc ip Theo y o Humo (Raskin 1985) o he Gene al
Theo y o Ve bal Humo (A a do and Raskin 1991), o name bu wo. Ob iously,
he pos -G icean, cogni i e p agma ic amewo k o ele ance heo y (Spe be
and Wilson 1986, 1995) could no be alien o he in e es a oused by humou , so
ele ance heo is s soon inco po a ed i in o hei esea ch agendas. On he basis
o his g ound-b eaking and e ealing heo y pu o wa d hi y yea s ago by Dan
Spe be and Dei d e Wilson, he e ha e been many illumina ing a emp s o
un a el how jokes, punning, monologues, i onies o si coms, among o he ypes o
humo ous ex s, wo k and achie e hei e ec s (e.g. Cu có 1995, 1996, 1997; Solska
2012a, 2012b; Yus Ramos 2003). Howe e , he imp essi e numbe o s udies has
no been accompanied so a by a uni ied, all-encompassing analysis o humou
h ough he lens o ele ance- heo e ic p agma ics.
Humou and Rele ance is a mos imely, insigh ul, cla i ying and inspi ing
monog aph ha ills ha gap by unde aking such an analysis. I e y sys ema ically
and elegan ly applies ele ance heo y o he in e p e a ion o di e en samples o
humou . I s en chap e s look in o he in e en ial p ocesses ha occu when hose
ex s a e p ocessed and how hey achie e hei expec ed e ec s. As he in oduc o y
chap e explains, his schola ly wo k is based on a se ies o assump ions:
(i) Humo ous ex s a e sca cely in o ma i e, bu such unin o ma i eness is
no mally compensa ed by e ec s o a non-p oposi ional na u e: laugh e ,
pleasu e, solida i y, e c.
(ii) Humo ous e ec s a ise as a consequence o humou is s’ mind eading
abili ies, which enable hem o p edic he in e p e i e s eps he audience
will ake.
(iii) Comp ehension elies on subconscious capabili ies o ank in e p e-
a ions depending on hei plausibili y and likelihood, and o choose only
one o hose in e p e a ions.
(i ) The e a e gaps be ween wha is mean and linguis ically encoded, and
wha he audience decode and ac ually in e p e , which can only be illed
by in e ence.
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Chap e one, “Rele ance heo y. Cogni i e p agma ics o human communica ion”,
in oduces eade s –o eminds hose al eady amilia ised– o his amewo k,
which, hough denying he Coope a i e P inciple and i s maxims (G ice 1975),
es s squa ely on wo impo an ea u es o G icean p agma ics: i s iew o
in en ionali y in communica ion and he no ion o implica u e. Key ele ance-
heo e ic concep s a e explained in a e y clea and didac ic manne : mani es ness,
deg ees o mani es ness, (mu ual) cogni i e en i onmen , (posi i e) cogni i e
e ec s, cogni i e/p ocessing e o , explica u e and ypes o implica u es. Bo h he
cogni i e and communica i e p inciple o ele ance a e also p esen ed, as well as he
comp ehension heu is ics ollowing om hem and he p ocess o mu ual pa allel
adjus men . This chap e unde lines ha hea e s no mally make hypo heses abou
he po en ial ele ance o inpu unde a pa icula in e p e a ion, bu hey canno
and do no ac ually assess he ele ance o all possible in e p e a ions be o e
selec ing he mos ele an one.
Maybe he mos in e es ing pa o his chap e is ha whe e Yus Ramos
commen s on he excessi e emphasis o ele ance heo y on he p oposi ional
na u e o cogni i e e ec s and a gues ha he e also a e non-p oposi ional
e ec s. These add up o posi i e p oposi ional ones and o he e o needed o
p ocessing, hus de e mining he ele ance o s imuli. Addi ionally, he au ho
con ends ha cogni i e e ec s may be a ec ed by se e al con ex ual cons ain s
which condi ion he (un)success ulness o communica ion. This leads him o
pu o wa d a easonable modi ica ion o he ele ance- heo e ic e ec -e o
o mula: he cogni i e e ec s gene a ed om he in e p e a ion o u e ances,
gi en ce ain posi i e con ex ual cons ain s and posi i e non-p oposi ional
e ec s, should exceed he men al e o needed o p ocess he u e ance and
he nega i e non-p oposi ional e ec s de i able om i . Be o e concluding his
chap e by add essing he sui abili y o ele ance heo y o accoun o social
aspec s o communica ion, Yus Ramos includes a igu e exhibi ing ou di e en
pa s in communica ion: speake -in ended p oposi ional pa s o in e p e a ion
(explica u es, s ong implica u es and p oposi ional a i ude), speake -suppo ed
non-p oposi ional e ec s o in e p e a ion (a ec i e a i ude), hea e -suppo ed
p oposi ional implica u es (weak implica u es) and hea e -suppo ed non-
p oposi ional e ec s o in e p e a ion, which go beyond he in e p e a ion o
u e ances and o which he hea e may o may no be ully awa e.
The sui abili y o Spe be and Wilson’s amewo k o accoun o he p oduc ion
o humou is shown in chap e wo: “Rele ance heo y. Gene al implica ions o
humou esea ch”. He e, he au ho eac s agains he (neo-) G icean wo-s ep
accoun , acco ding o which humou a ises when seeming uncoope a i eness
and iola ion o con e sa ional maxims a e no iced. Humou , he au ho claims,
s ems om he speake ’s in en ion o communica e in o ma ion esul ing in i ,
he mani es ness o such in en ion and/o play wi h elemen s pe aining o he
explici o he implici side o communica ion (e.g., al e na i e o less accessible
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explica u es, e c.). Mo eo e , humou is s and audiences mus sha e some
in o ma ion o he o me mus succeed a ac i a ing speci ic assump ions in he
la e ’s mind. To some ex en , his ag ees wi h a basic ene o enc yp ion heo y:
namely, ha jokes may be deciphe ed whene e he audience ha e a key, ha key
being backg ound in o ma ion (Flamson and Ba e 2008; Flamson and B yan
2013).
Relying on he ele ance- heo e ic iew o comp ehension, Yus Ramos also
explains ha , despi e hei dis up i eness and low in o ma i eness, humo ous
ex s a e accompanied by a p esump ion o op imal ele ance. This p esump ion
en i les he audience o sea ch o p oposi ional and non-p oposi ional e ec s
ha compensa e o he e o hei p ocessing equi es. The audience ollow
he pa h o leas e o and maximum bene i , and s op when hey ob ain a
sa is ac o y amoun o e ec s. Bu humou is s may somehow an icipa e he
audience’s in e p e i e s eps and p edic likely in e p e a ions hanks o hei
me a ep esen a ional abili ies. These enable humou is s o bias he audience
o an ini ial, easily accessible, bu inadequa e in e p e a ion, which mus be
subsequen ly disca ded. Recen esea ch on epis emic igilance mechanisms
(Masca o and Spe be 2009; Spe be e al. 2010) and hei ole in humou (Padilla
C uz 2012) leads he au ho o s a e ha humou o igina es when he audience
become awa e ha hey ha e been ooled in o aking ha i s in e p e a ion as
in ended. Such awa eness is possible hanks o hose mechanisms, which de ec
he inadequacy o he i s in e p e a ion and igge he sea ch o an al e na i e
one by enac ing a sophis ica ed p ocessing s a egy.
This chap e is closed by a guing ha mani es ness o a humo ous in en ion
and awa eness o ha ing been ooled do no au oma ically gua an ee humou .
Humou addi ionally depends on a se ies o cons ain s ha a e lis ed in de ail
and con enien ly explained: he sui abili y o he humo ous ex ; he audience’s
backg ound knowledge; he in e locu o s’ gende , cul u e, e hnici y, mood, sense o
humou and social ela ionship; he size o he g oup whe e he humo ous ex is
p oduced, and he humou is ’s ai s and pe o mance.
The hi d chap e , “Incong ui y- esolu ion e isi ed”, analyses he d awbacks o
models s essing he impo ance o de ec ing an incong uous elemen and e acing
in o de o ind a ule ha makes sense o incong ui y: Koes le ’s (1964) bisocia ion
heo y, Suls’s (1972) wo-s age model, endo sed by McGhee (1979), A a do e al.
(2002) o Dynel (2012a), o Ri chie’s (2005) o ced in e p e a ion model, o name bu
some. These models basically depic how incong ui ies a ise, whe e hey may be
loca ed and how hey a e esol ed. Yus Ramos belie es ha incong ui ies may esul
om in e p e i e p ocesses and/o inadequa e ames o , mo e p ecisely, make-
sense ames, a label he c ea ed in p e ious wo k because o o e lap in p e ious
e minology. Bu o him, he eally in iguing issue is why incong ui y is humo ous.
His p oposal elies on he human endencies o make he mos o he e o
in es ed and o ule ou incong ui ies. P ocessing a humo ous ex and esol ing
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an incong ui y demand e o , which is o se by a a ie y o e ec s. Among hem
is he pleasu e ha people ge om he e y p ocess o esol ing he incong ui y o
he disco e y eeling. The la e is expe ienced when he audience o a humo ous
ex ealise ha hey ha e been ooled in o an inapp op ia e in e p e a ion in wha
Yus Ramos (2003) called he mul iple-g aded in e p e a ion pa o jokes and hey
ind an al e na i e in e p e a ion in he single-co e in e p e a ion pa . Fo Yus
Ramos, esolu ion o incong ui ies is a p econdi ion o g asp humou , al hough
some incong ui ies a e no comple ely sol ed and linge in he audience’s mind
(Ri chie 2005; Fo abosco 2008; Dynel 2012b).
This chap e concludes wi h a b and-new classi ica ion o incong ui y- esolu ion
pa e ns, which is based on h ee c i e ia: (a) whe he he incong ui y is discou se-
o ame-based, (b) whe he he esolu ion o he incong ui y is discou se-,
ame- o implica u e-based, and (c) he loca ion o he incong ui y, i.e. he se up
o punchline o he joke. This yields wel e pa e ns, o which he au ho gi es
app op ia e examples, e en i he also acknowledges ha some o hose pa e ns a e
no e y equen o ha examples o o he s a e di icul o ind.
Chap e ou elabo a es on a model o humo ous communica ion ha Yus Ramos
p e iously pu o wa d: he In e sec ing Ci cles Model, which is based on he c ucial
ole o in e p e i e s eps and knowledge s uc u es in jokes. Humou is s an icipa e
how hei ex s may be p ocessed and/o inci e he audience o ac i a e ames
ha clash wi h o he ames subsequen ly ac i a ed, so ini ially ac i a ed ames
mus be eplaced. In e p e a i e asks, make-sense ames and cul u al ames
a e p ecisely he h ee pa ame e s, ep esen ed as ci cles, upon which he au ho
cons uc s a new classi ica ion o jokes, which imp o es an ea lie one (Yus Ramos
2008, 2013). I s se en ypes o jokes o igina e om he sou ce o humou : al e na i e
o inco ec ou pu o in e p e a i e asks, ac i a ion o inapp op ia e cul u al o
make-sense ames, join in e ac ion o cul u al and make-sense ames, ac i a ion
o a cul u al/make-sense ame and inadequa e ou pu o in e p e a i e asks, o
join ac i a ion o a cul u al ame and a make-sense ame and inadequa e ou pu
o in e p e a i e asks. The p esen a ion o he se en ypes o jokes is ollowed by
an in e es ing able ha illus a es how humo ous e ec s esul om he in e en ial
asks in mu ual pa allel adjus men .
This chap e also dedica es a pa o punning, which s a s by e ising ex an wo k
on ypes o puns (i.e., pa adigma ic s. syn agma ic, single- e en ion s. double-
e en ion) and hei bases (homonymy, polysemy, me apho ic, homophony and
pa onymy) by Solska (2012a, 2012b) and classi ica ions o puns by Dynel (2010) and
Seewoes e (2011). Thei limi a ions p omp Yus Ramos o p opose an al e na i e
classi ica ion, which elies on a combina ion o he ollowing h ee pa ame e s:
(a) punning s uc u e, i.e. whe he he pun e ains wo senses, a sense is accessed
and subsequen ly ejec ed and eplaced by ano he , o mul iple senses a e absen ;
(b) sense ela ionship, i.e. homonymy, homophony o polysemy, and (c) in e en ial
s a egy equi ed.
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Chap e i e u ns a en ion o s and-up comedy monologues. A e acing
c i icism agains he alleged unsui abili y o ele ance heo y o add ess social
o cul u al aspec s o communica ion, he au ho explains he no ion o cul u al
ep esen a ion, which is essen ial o unde s anding how his ype o comedy
amuses audiences, a se ies o dicho omies –men al s. public, ep esen a ions s.
belie s, indi idual s. mu ually mani es , s eng hening s. challenging, pe sonal
s. me a ep esen ed cul u al– and he epidemiological model o cul u e p oposed
by Spe be (1996). This model po ays cul u e as a phenomenon in which a se ies
o p i a e men al ep esen a ions a e made public and hei pe cei e s do no
duplica e bu in e p e hem upon o ging hei own p i a e ep esen a ions.
S and-up comedies a e cons ained by a numbe o ac o s –e.g. he enue,
sea ing, p oximi y wi h comedian, e c. The audience, Yus Ramos a gues, wan
o ge hei money’s wo h by being en e ained and amused. They b ing some
expec a ions ega ding he comedian’s likely beha iou and wha hey will ge
du ing he show, which somehow ha e an impac on he cogni i e e ec s ha
hey will de i e and, he e o e, on hei expe ience. In hese shows, u he mo e,
comedians ake ad an age o s a egies such as laye ing and ela ing concep s o
(mis)leading he audience o access and use speci ic knowledge o in o ma ion
om p e ious discou se, which a e con enien ly accoun ed o wi h he ele ance-
heo e ic appa a us and illus a ed wi h eal examples. O hose s a egies,
no ewo hy is play wi h collec i e cul u al ep esen a ions. Monologues o en
add ess easily ecognisable cul u al issues o belie s, which, e en i conside ed
p i a e, u n ou o be sha ed: equen ac ions in speci ic ci cums ances, usual
emo ions, common eac ions o inconsis encies o human beha iou . Humou
is s a ed o a ise as a consequence o he mani es ness o assump ions abou
issues ha igge speci ic eac ions and disco e ing ha o he people ha e
simila assump ions and eac ions. The joy o mani es ness, as he au ho labels
i , is essen ial o s and-up comedies o amuse, c ea e eelings o communi y and
oge he ness, and ein o ce iden i y.
“Humo ous i onies” is he opic o he six h chap e . I expands on a p e ious
analysis o a phenomenon ha diminishes he h ea eningness o he nega i e
a i ude cha ac e is ic o i ony o allows speake s o sa e ace by so ening c i icism.
In his chap e , Yus Ramos a gues ha in i ony p ocessing some con ex ual
sou ces ac i a ed simul aneously o sequen ially become incompa ible wi h he
p oposi ional con en and igge a sea ch o a non-li e al in e p e a ion. Such
sou ces comp ise gene al encyclopaedic knowledge, speci ic knowledge abou he
speake , knowledge s o ed in sho - e m memo y abou ecen e en s and ac ions,
p e ious u e ances in he same o ano he con e sa ion, he speake ’s non-
e bal beha iou , lexical o g amma ical choices, o he physical a ea su ounding
he in e locu o s. One o hese con ex ual sou ces may be c ucial (leading) and
he o he s suppo i e. In o ma ion abou he speake acc ued h ough epea ed
in e ac ion ends o be pa icula ly aluable, inasmuch as i es ic s he a ea

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o he in e locu o s’ cogni i e en i onmen s ha is ac ually mu ual. This is a
na owed cogni i e en i onmen , a e minological e inemen in oduced in he
book. Whe he an u e ance is unde s ood as i onic depends on he numbe and
ype o con ex ual sou ces ac i a ed, hei sequen ial o simul aneous ac i a ion,
accessibili y o he in o ma ion in hose sou ces and when he dissocia i e a i ude
cha ac e is ic o i ony is no iced. Acco dingly, he au ho di e en ia es six cases in
he in e p e a ion o i ony:
(i) as in e p e a ion,
(ii) i onical in e p e a ion hal -way h ough he explici in e p e a ion,
(iii) i onical in e p e a ion a he end o he u e ance,
(i ) i onic and li e al in e p e a ions held in pa allel,
( ) explici in e p e a ion and hen i onic in e p e a ion, and
( i) unde ec ed i onical in e p e a ion.
Yus Ramos also o e s a sequence o i ony comp ehension, whe e mind eading
is igge ed i s in o de o a ibu e in en ions and belie s, he p agma ic module
ex ac s he logical o m and ca ies ou mu ual pa allel adjus men , and epis emic
igilance mechanisms de ec incong ui ies be ween li e al meaning and con ex ual
sou ces. The speake ’s a i ude is hen iden i ied and he sou ce o he echo loca ed.
I is only a his s age ha an i onic in e p e a ion may be eached. I ony u ns
humo ous when, o example, he disc epancy be ween wha is said and mean is
high o he hea e , in addi ion o he dissocia i e a i ude ha he speake p ojec s
owa d he p oposi ion, iden i ies a second-o de , eeling- o emo ion- ela ed
a i ude: an a ec i e a i ude. Such eeling o emo ion may be indica ed by means o
laugh e , o ins ance. Humo ous i onies, he au ho concludes, may be enchained
and laughed a , which c ea es bonds o union be ween indi iduals, o be p oduced
o he me e joy o mani es ness.
T ansla ing humo ous ex s may u n ou o be an o deal, as is shown in chap e
se en: “Humou and ansla ion”. The e is a esemblance ela ion be ween wha
he humou is in ends o communica e and wha she says in he sou ce language
(SL), o which o he esemblance ela ionships a e added: hose be ween wha
he ex encodes and he ansla o unde s ands, wha he ansla o unde s ands
and wha he p oduces in he a ge language (TL), and wha he TL ex means and
i s TL eade ship in e p e . The c ux o ansla ion o humo ous ex s is p ecisely
o p ese e hei humou and he s a egies deployed o gene a e i ; al e a ion o
coded con en is no as impo an .
Yus Ramos de ises a cha ha ep esen s cases o ansla abili y o humou
on he basis o h ee pa ame e s: (a) he cul u al scena io, o he ype o people,
si ua ion o ac ion in he ex ; (b) he seman ic scena io, o how he in o ma ion
is encoded, and (c) he p agma ic scena io, o he in e en ial s eps necessa y o
in e p e he ex and he balance e o -e ec achie ed. Combina ion o hese
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h ee scena ios yields six een ypes o jokes in e ms o hei ansla abili y, which
may be g ouped unde h ee majo ca ego ies:
(i) ans e able jokes, wi h in e cul u ally alid ames, pa allel o ms o coding
and simila p agma ic scena ios;
(ii) eplaceable jokes, whe e linguis ic al e na i es ha e o be ound in o de o
keep a simila e o -e ec balance, and
(iii) challenging jokes, which pose se ious di icul ies.
A e con enien ly exempli ying and discussing hese ypes o jokes, he au ho
also sugges s a ele ance- heo e ic i ine a y o he ansla ion o jokes:
1- Reading and unde s anding he SL ex and assessing he e ec s he SL
audience may ob ain.
2- Analysing he SL ex in e ms o cul u al ames, concep s and p agma ic
scena io.
3- Sea ching o equi alen coding, i possible.
4- De e mining whe he he SL ex in e en ial s eps may be ep oduced.
5- Assessing i a simila e o -e ec balance may be p ese ed.
Chap e eigh u ns a en ion o a ype o mul imodal humou whe e ex and
image a e insepa able: ca oons in p ess, a sub-gen e ha has g ea ly e ol ed since
he 1920s and whe e eade s need o in e p e bo h he ex and he accompanying
isual elemen . The in e p e a ion o he la e is pa icula ly iskie because
eade s unde ake mo e esponsibili y when gene a ing in e p e a i e hypo heses.
Yus Ramos explains ha images in ca oons ha e wha he labels isual explica u es
and isual implica u es, a aluable con ibu ion o his book. When images ha e
deno a i e quali y and only ill he en i onmen in a ca oon, hey ha e isual
explica u es. In con as , i images in e ac wi h he con ex ual in o ma ion in he
panel and ha e a conno a i e quali y, hey gi e ise o isual implica u es. As wi h
u e ances, he mo e implici he in e p e a ion o an image, he mo e open i is.
Acco ding o he au ho , many ca oons achie e humou hanks o isual
me apho s, which a e in e p e ed by a specialised isual module. Images
in en ionally used igge a i s , mo e conscious s age o p ocessing whe e he mind
accesses he p o o ypical isual e e en – he encyclopaedic en y o he elemen s
in he image– and he p o o ypical isual syn ax – hose i ems associa ed wi h he
objec s in he image. When some objec s s ike eade s as anomalous, incong ui ies
a ise and eade s y o esol e hem. Nex , a he isual-concep ual in e ace eade s
gene a e hypo heses abou he ela ions be ween he elemen s in he ca oon and
hei encyclopaedic in o ma ion. Reade s examine he images, decide which one
wo ks as a opic and which one as a ehicle o ans e cha ac e is ics, check he
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isual a angemen be ween images (simila i y, opposi ion, associa ion, e c.) and
de e mine whe he images e ain hei ypical encyclopaedic e e en s o s and o
di e en encyclopaedic e e en s. Then, eade s ca y ou a men al p ocedu e ha
Yus Ramos e ms ad hoc choice o image-associa ed concep ual ames.
Ano he ema kable con ibu ion o his chap e is showing ha ca oons
also equi e mu ual pa allel adjus men . This in ol es a se ies o simul aneous
p ocesses comp ising decoding and en ichmen o he e bal con en in o de o
cons uc i s explica u es, in e ing implica u es om he e bal con en , decoding
and en iching he isual elemen in o de o ob ain a isual explica u e, de i ing
implica u es om he isual elemen , in e ing possible combina ions o ex and
image, and accessing as much con ex ual in o ma ion as necessa y. Since he isual
elemen suppo s he ex ual one, i may supply addi ional ma e ial enabling a
pa icula eading. The isual elemen , mo eo e , will equi e addi ional in e en ial
wo k i i is e y abs ac . All his is duly illus a ed by means o a se ies o examples.
Ano he o m o mul imodal humou is analysed in chap e nine: ad e isemen s.
Humou has been p o ed o ha e signi ican impac on p oduc ecall, e alua ion
o pu chase in en ion, so i is equen ly used in publici y o a ac a en ion,
c ea e a posi i e a i ude o b ands/p oduc s, enhance pe suasion, p oduce
joy, educe he endency o coun e -a gue, so en some aboo opics, e c. This
chap e makes a se ies o illumina ing claims ega ding he unc ions and e ec s
o humou in ads. Since hese a e o en paid e y li le o no a en ion a all, he
( unny) p oblems, enigmas o incong ui ies posed he ein a e said o help inc ease
a en ion and conceal selle s’ eal in en ions. On he o he hand, he endencies
o selec e o less in e p e a ions ha may subsequen ly u n ou incong uous
and o ule ou incong ui ies yield a ious eelings, which a e simila ly achie ed
h ough punning and social o cul u al ep esen a ions. Like jokes and wi icisms,
he challenge punning poses a ouses in e es , holds a en ion, ensu es p oduc
ecall and c ea es posi i e eelings. In u n, allusion o cul u al s e eo ypes may
s eng hen o ques ion hese and p o oke a ied eac ions in he audience.
The book concludes wi h a b ie chap e dedica ed o con e sa ional humou .
Much o he c i icism le elled agains ele ance heo y highligh s i s conce n
o an idealised dyadic speake -hea e in e ac ion. Con e sa ional humou o
con e sa ional joking –i.e. hose wo ds, u e ances, wi icisms, e c. inse ed wi hin
a con e sa ion as his un olds (No ick 1993; No ick and Chia o 2009; Dynel
2009)– ul ils unc ions such as manipula ion, showing powe , building solida i y,
h ea ening he audience’s ace o mi iga ing (Hay 2000; A a do 2002; Dynel 2007).
Yus Ramos accoun s o hese e ec s in wo si ua ions. When a speake holds he
loo and ells a joke, whe he each membe o he audience is ac ually amused
depends on idiosync a ic ac o s such as mood, sense o humou , access o con ex ,
e c. On he o he hand, in mul ipa y con e sa ions whe e pa icipan s co-cons uc
humou by adding o he con e sa ion and expanding ini ia ed jokes, ph ases,
u ns, e c., he ele ance and humou o hei con ibu ions mus be nego ia ed
Reseñas
283
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h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/PH.2016.i30.15 Philologia Hispalensis 30/1 (2016) 275-287
and is con ingen on o he con ibu ions and di e se posi i e/nega i e con ex ual
cons ain s. Acco dingly, Yus Ramos belie es ha new dis inc ions should be made
be ween wha he labels pa ial ele ance, sus ained ele ance, ansi ional ele ance
and de e ed ele ance in o de o sa is ac o ily apply ele ance heo y o ongoing
discou se and con e sa ional phenomena.
Qui e undeniably, Humou and Rele ance is a majo achie emen . No only does
i s au ho show he sui abili y o ele ance heo y o o e con incing explana ions
abou how audiences cap u e he unniness o a a ie y o ex s p oduced in dis inc
con ex s, he ac o s de e mining hei humo ousness and how humo ous e ec s
a e de i ed, bu he also does so wi h in a e y schola ly and didac ic manne . In ac ,
he book is w i en in a qui e ag eeable and close s yle, which su aces in a p ose
ha is easy o ollow and unde s and. His mas e y o he ield he maps, cha s and
explo es in dep h, as well as o he ools employed o do so, a e also unques ionable.
Yus Ramos e idences a sound and wide knowledge o amewo ks, ends and
con ibu ions in humou s udies, which endows him wi h a b oad his o ical
pe spec i e, hanks o which he can de ec gaps, o e looked issues o weaknesses
in exis ing app oaches and o e come hem wi h appealing p oposals. His ex ensi e
backg ound in ele ance- heo e ic p agma ics, on he o he hand, enables him
o eso o he adequa e no ional and heo e ical appa a us o sol e unanswe ed
p oblems o issues uncon incingly add essed. Mo eo e , his no blind, bu c i ical
adhe ence o Spe be and Wilson’s heo y encou ages him o make e inemen s
o imp o emen s on some o hei well-known concep s and heo e ical ene s.
Cases in poin a e, o ins ance, he no ions o non-p oposi ional e ec , con ex ual
sou ces, con ex ual cons ain s o na owed cogni i e en i onmen , o he e ision
o he condi ions o ele ance, which esea che s will su ely ake in o accoun and
will sho ly inco po a e in u u e esea ch.
The said his o ical pe spec i e is also no iceable in he exe cise o hindsigh
and e ision ha Yus Ramos makes o his own p e ious wo k, on which, as duly
acknowledged, some o he chap e s in his book a e based. Decade-long, ac i e
and pe sis en esea ch has ui ully yielded ou s anding and o en-quo ed
con ibu ions ha a e he e ex ensi ely e ised, upda ed and imp o ed by
inco po a ing ecen indings, de elopmen s and p oposals – he lis o e e ences
is imp essi e and includes e y ecen i les– mee ing new challenges and acing
c i icism aised. This, unques ioningly, e idences awa eness o he limi a ions o
his p e ious p oposals and exhibi s cons an conce n o quali y and excellence,
which s imula es he au ho o make ecu en e o s o go back o his wo k wi h a
iew o inc easing i s explana o y powe .
Schola ship, cla i y and inno a i eness a e no he only ema kable ea u es o his
eye-opening and hough -p o oking olume. I s pages con ain a numbe o ables,
igu es and diag ams whe ewi h he au ho me iculously summa ises, illus a es o
depic s ideas, claims o p ocesses. In ields whe e conce n o impeccable heo y,
pe suasi e a gumen a ion and suppo i e p oo s a e pe ading, his is a aluable