Humour is good medicine: The Algonquin perspective on humour in their culture and of outsider constructions of Aboriginal humour

Abstract

This thesis presents the experiential viewpoints of Algonquin people who participated in a research project that examined the role humour plays in Algonquin society, looking at Elders humour, healing, spirituality, creativity, family, social, and inter-cultural relations. The exploratory research was framed within Canadian Studies discourse, written from an Aboriginal perspective crediting indigenous knowledge. Areas of discussion included the place of humour in Algonquin society, outsiders' cultural constructions of Aboriginal humour, and influences acting on the transmission and preservation of Algonquin humour heritage. It considered the influences of outsiders' cultural constructions of Aboriginal humour in mass media, and in historical, sociological and anthropological discourse.