This course will explore the many ways in which humor is used to address issues that are often anything but funny. The course will be thematic and address the readings individually within that theme. Readings will be fiction, non-fiction, poetry and drama, and an analysis of some visual humor will be explored, both from television and movies and the visual arts. Each thematic unit will conclude with a written analysis of the issue, how humor was used and an analysis of why humor was used. Various types of humor will be taught and highlighted where appropriate in the readings; such as, satire, parody, irony, exaggeration, lampoon, etc. Some possible themes: “The Battle of the Sexes”, “Coming of Age”, “War”, “Politics”, “Death”, and others.