A rambling, stunningly self-important and acritical account of humour that explicitly rejects theory in favour of a through consideration of the canonical classics of humour (Shakespeare, Wilde and Mozart), and what they might teach us. One cannot reject the power and worth of these examples, because their genius and importance is so immediately apparent. The basic notion is that the intersection of love and folly in the chosen works creates an understanding of the intertwining of grace and folly. When these works are performed, they are art, and as art give as an insight into existential truth. The particular truth of comedy is that of grace through folly. This is a self-indulgent piece of nonsense.
From the back cover: "Gelven finds that in revealing the spirit of graced folly, comedy teaches us about our own essence, the fundamental nature of our finitude. This will undoubtedly be of considerable importance not only to philosophical aestheticians or literary critics, but also for those seeking to understand the nature of truth itself."
