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Jokes are intellectual can-openers offering surprisingly powerful insights into not only how our minds work - but into how the world around us works too.
Why? Well, when you think about it, a good joke requires, demands, a very special kind of deep thinking - a kind of world-upturning, no-holds-barred problem solving. It's the same skill that produces the great insights of art and commerce, the insight that sees solutions and creates opportunities. And yes, such skills can be approached through exercises and study, but there's no good reason to think such sensible methods work any better than having a sense of humour.
So why not, at least for a moment, throw all conventional thinking to the wind, and start re-examining the world through the very special, very beautiful prism of jokes and riddles?
"With wit and irony, Martin Cohen explains the basic concepts of philosophy and incidentally introduces the most famous thinkers in history." - Der Spiegel.
About the author
Martin Cohen is an academic and author specializing in popular books in philosophy, social science, and politics, including 101 Philosophy Problems and Critical Thinking Skills for Dummies. Other recent books include a look at how scientists work called Paradigm Shift and I Think Therefore I Eat. He has both researched and taught at universities in the UK, France, and Australia.
