Wednesday, April 11, 2012

What is the primary source for the quote "the pun is the lowest tipe of wit"? How is it connected with the names: Dr. Samuel Johnson & John Dryden?

Actually, the quote "The pun is the lowest form of wit" is attributed to the English dramatist John Dennis who wrote this opinion about 300 years ago. However, the pun, which is also known by the term "paraonomasia" has been around much longer than Dennis. Homer's Odyssey has one of the earliest known literary puns. "In the epic, Odysseus identifies himself as “Nobody” when he’s captured by a one-eyed giant. Later, when Odysseus puts out the giant’s eye, the giant cries for help, yelling, “Nobody is killing me!” Shakespeare plays are full of puns. In fact, books have been written simply on the puns of Shakespeare.

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What is the main function of the fool in "King Lear"? What is the secondly function?

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