Post-socialist Jokes in Estonia: Continuity and Change

Abstract

The dissertation consists of an introductory chapter and five articles (four published and one in press). It approaches Estonian contemporary jokelore from different perspectives, covering the area of topical, ethnic and political jokes, giving an overview of the material used in the research, and eventually aiming at cross-cultural comparisons with other Eastern European joke traditions. The main aims of the dissertation were to describe the embeddedness of jokes in their social reality, outline the research done on Estonian contemporary jokes during the last decade, and analyse the categories of topical, ethnic and political jokes in order to adjust the established models of joke production to the Eastern European situation. The articles provide insights about the interaction of folklore and its surroundings (the political, economic, cultural and other contexts), claiming that the features and coverage of events in the social reality have a slightly varying, but recognisable influence on jokes. As an indicator of an interaction between the genre and its surroundings, the continuities and change in certain joke subcategories are described throughout the post-socialist period, at the same time drawing parallels to earlier times. As a result of the general analysis, the conclusion stresses the influence of the political context on ethnic and other jokes, which overarches the established factors shaping jokes (cultural proximity, economic and other status in the society, interethnic relations, etc). The notion of post-socialism frames the articles and proposes that the (disappearing and globalizing) specificity in contemporary Eastern European humour tradition should yet be studied in greater detail. Of all phenomena and traditions in culture, jokes and other forms of humour may offer a unique and informative topical prism for a broader dis­cussion of post-socialist culture by examining its main processes, features and functions in the society. Väitekiri koosneb katuspeatükist ja viiest artiklist (neli avaldatud ja üks ilmumas). Töö põhieesmärgiks on pakkuda erinevaid võimalusi sissevaateks folkloorsete (eelkõige päeva­kajaliste, etniliste ja poliitiliste) naljade interaktsioonidesse nende poliiti­lise, majandusliku, kultuurilise jm ümbrusega, tutvustada empiirikat ja analüüsile eelnenud tööd, koondada osa eesti kaasaegsete anekdootide kohta tehtud teadustööst, ning osutada järjepidevusele ja muutumisele eesti anekdoodipärimuses, mis etniliste naljade puhul aitab senisest täpsemalt prognoosida nende sisu ja kirjeldada sõltuvust sotsiaalsest reaalsusest (sh poliitilisest kontekstist). Käesolev uurimus eeldab, et anek­doodid on tihedalt seotud neid ümbritseva reaalsusega, ja see avaldub mõõde­tavate näitajate kaudu. Analüüsides anekdootide esinemissagedust, selle muutumist ajas jms, saame informatsiooni selle kohta, millised on anekdootide tunnused (süžee, tegelased, vorm) erinevates ühiskonnakordades, ning mille poolest on need võrreldavad. Läbivaks mõisteks on poststsialism, mis raamistab diskussiooni, ning samas osutab Ida-Euroopa huumoripärimuse unikaalsusele, mille uurimiseks on praegu sobivaim hetk, arvestades globaliseerumise mõjusid. Anekdoodid, ühena paljudest huumorižanreist, annavad olulist teavet nii nähtuse enda kui ühiskonna kohta laiemalt ja võimaldavad arutelu postsotsialistliku kultuuriruumi eripäradest.