Proceedings of The International Conference on Research in Humanities and Social Sciences
Year: 2018
DOI:
Two Models of Verbal Humor in Hebrew and English Adaptations to the Fairytale Ramplestilskin A Comparative Approach
Maya Frutchman
ABSTRACT:
This article is a comparison between two writers of children’s literature especially their two modern Adaptations to the fairytale Ramplestilskin. These writers are, Abraham Shlonsky, a Hebrew poet who wrote for children as well and Eleanor Farjeon, a unique English writer of children’s literature who is considered one of the 20th century’s most prominent authors for children. The comparison will be held between Shlonsky’s play of the 1960’s Utz Li Gutz Li (“Callme Smallme”) and Farjeon’s novel “The Silver Curlew”.
Both works are founded on humor, especially verbal humor, differing between the two authors. Shlonsky uses a humor that is manifested in a diversion from idioms and customary phrases, non-Hebrew words and newly invented words. His work is mostly based on morphology and the dictionary. Farjeon is more prone to homonyms and structures containing double meaning that are a recurring motif in the work. This article will demonstrate these different techniques – the similar and the dissimilar in the creation of humor.