Necessary Madness

Camfield offers a comprehensive examination of the ways humour was used by major writers of fiction in 19th-century America. Camfield argues that humour serves as an important tool for both men and women to manage the ideology of domesticity so prevalent at the time, and he shows how gender comes to bear upon comic techniques and sensibilities.

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Camfield offers a comprehensive examination of the ways humour was used by major writers of fiction in nineteenth-century America. Camfield argues that humour serves as an important tool for both men and women to manage the ideology of domesticity so prevalent at the time, and he shows how gender comes to bear upon comic techniques and sensibilities.