Wit: Difference between revisions
Content deleted Content added
→References: +box Tag: Disambiguation links added |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 2: | Line 2: | ||
{{About|the form of humor|other uses|Wit (disambiguation)}} |
{{About|the form of humor|other uses|Wit (disambiguation)}} |
||
{{Wiktionary|wit}} |
{{Wiktionary|wit}} |
||
[[File:'The feast of reason, and the flow of soul,' - ie - the wits of the age, setting the table in a roar by James Gillray.jpg|thumb|{{center|"The feast of reason |
[[File:'The feast of reason, and the flow of soul,' - ie - the wits of the age, setting the table in a roar by James Gillray.jpg|thumb|{{center|"The feast of reason..."{{br}} — [[James Gillray]] (1797)}}]] |
||
'''Wit''' is a form of intelligent [[humour]] |
'''Wit''' is a form of intelligent [[humour]]—the ability to say or write things that are clever and typically funny.<ref name="Merriam-Webster">{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/wit|title=wit|publisher=Merriam-Webster|access-date=2012-05-27}}</ref> Someone '''witty''' is a person who is skilled at making clever and funny remarks.<ref name="Merriam-Webster"/><ref>{{cite web|title=wit|url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/wit|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120719033005/http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/wit|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 19, 2012|website=Oxford Dictionaries|access-date=29 May 2015}}</ref> Forms of wit include the '''quip''', '''repartee''', and '''wisecrack'''. |
||
==Forms== |
==Forms== |
||
As in the wit of [[Dorothy Parker]]'s set, the [[Algonquin Round Table]], witty remarks may be intentionally cruel (as in many [[epigram]]s), and perhaps more [[Genius|ingenious]] than funny. |
As in the wit of [[Dorothy Parker]]'s set, the [[Algonquin Round Table]], witty remarks may be intentionally cruel (as also in many ''[[epigram]]s''), and perhaps more [[Genius|ingenious]] than funny. |
||
A quip is an observation or saying that has some wit but perhaps descends into [[sarcasm]], or otherwise is short of a point |
A ''quip'' is an observation or saying that has some wit but perhaps descends into [[sarcasm]], or otherwise is short of a point. A ''witticism'' also suggests the diminutive. |
||
Repartee is the wit of the quick answer and capping comment: the snappy comeback and neat retort. ([[Oscar Wilde|Wilde]]: "I wish I'd said that." [[James Whistler|Whistler]]: "You will, Oscar |
''Repartee'' is the wit of the quick answer and capping comment: the snappy comeback and neat retort. ([[Oscar Wilde|Wilde]]: "I wish I'd said that." [[James Whistler|Whistler]]: "You will, Oscar. You will.")<ref>[[Monty Python]]: [https://montypython.fandom.com/wiki/Oscar_Wilde_Sketch Oscar Wilde sketch]</ref> |
||
[[Metaphysical poetry]] as a style was prevalent in the time of English playwright [[William Shakespeare]], who admonished pretension with the phrase "Better a witty fool than a foolish wit".<ref name="Salingar1976">{{cite book|last=Salingar |first=Leo |title=Shakespeare and the Traditions of Comedy |url=https://archive.org/details/shakespearetradi0000sali |
[[Metaphysical poetry]] as a style was prevalent in the time of English playwright [[William Shakespeare]], who admonished pretension with the phrase "Better a witty fool than a foolish wit".<ref name="Salingar1976">{{cite book|last=Salingar |first=Leo |title=Shakespeare and the Traditions of Comedy |url=https://archive.org/details/shakespearetradi0000sali |url-access=registration|year=1976 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-29113-2 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/shakespearetradi0000sali/page/245/mode/1up 245]–246}}</ref> It may combine [[word play]] with conceptual thinking, as a kind of verbal display requiring attention, without intending to be laugh-out-loud funny. Indeed wit in verse can be a thin disguise for more poignant feelings. English poet [[John Donne]] is the representative of this style.<ref name="Daley1990">{{cite book|last=Daley |first=Koos |title=The Triple Fool: A Critical Evaluation of Constantijn Huygens' Translations of John Donne |year=1990 |publisher=De Graaf |isbn=978-90-6004-405-6 |page=58}}</ref> |
||
|access-date=6 October 2010 |year=1990 |publisher=De Graaf |isbn=978-90-6004-405-6 |page=58}}</ref> |
|||
==Other uses== |
|||
| ⚫ | More generally, one's wits are one's intellectual powers of all types. Native wit |
||
| ⚫ | More generally, one's ''wits'' are one's intellectual powers of all types. ''Native wit''—meaning the wits with which one is born—is closely synonymous with [[common sense]]. To ''live by one's wits'' is to be an [[Opportunism|opportunist]], but not always of the scrupulous kind. ''To have one's wits about one'' is to be alert and capable of quick [[reason]]ing. To be at the end of one's wits (''"I'm at wits' end"'') is to be immensely [[Frustration|frustrate]]d.{{Citation needed|date=February 2022|reason=A lot of claims without any source.}} |
||
{{Wiktionary|native wit}} |
{{Wiktionary|native wit}} |
||
{{Wikiquote|wit}} |
{{Wikiquote|wit}} |
||
| Line 32: | Line 33: | ||
===Bibliography=== |
===Bibliography=== |
||
*D. W. |
* {{cite book|first=D. W.|last=Jefferson|chapter=''Tristram Shandy'' and the Tradition of Learned Wit|title=Essays in Criticism|volume=1|year=1951|pages=225–49}} |
||
{{Comedy footer}} |
{{Comedy footer}} |
||
Revision as of 15:24, 22 August 2023
Look up wit in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
"The feast of reason..."
— James Gillray (1797)
— James Gillray (1797)
Wit is a form of intelligent humour—the ability to say or write things that are clever and typically funny.[1] Someone witty is a person who is skilled at making clever and funny remarks.[1][2] Forms of wit include the quip, repartee, and wisecrack.
Forms
As in the wit of Dorothy Parker's set, the Algonquin Round Table, witty remarks may be intentionally cruel (as also in many epigrams), and perhaps more ingenious than funny.
A quip is an observation or saying that has some wit but perhaps descends into sarcasm, or otherwise is short of a point. A witticism also suggests the diminutive.
Repartee is the wit of the quick answer and capping comment: the snappy comeback and neat retort. (Wilde: "I wish I'd said that." Whistler: "You will, Oscar. You will.")[3]
Metaphysical poetry as a style was prevalent in the time of English playwright William Shakespeare, who admonished pretension with the phrase "Better a witty fool than a foolish wit".[4] It may combine word play with conceptual thinking, as a kind of verbal display requiring attention, without intending to be laugh-out-loud funny. Indeed wit in verse can be a thin disguise for more poignant feelings. English poet John Donne is the representative of this style.[5]
Other uses
More generally, one's wits are one's intellectual powers of all types. Native wit—meaning the wits with which one is born—is closely synonymous with common sense. To live by one's wits is to be an opportunist, but not always of the scrupulous kind. To have one's wits about one is to be alert and capable of quick reasoning. To be at the end of one's wits ("I'm at wits' end") is to be immensely frustrated.[citation needed]
Look up native wit in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Wikiquote has quotations related to wit.
See also
References
- ^ a b "wit". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 2012-05-27.
- ^ "wit". Oxford Dictionaries. Archived from the original on July 19, 2012. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
- ^ Monty Python: Oscar Wilde sketch
- ^ Salingar, Leo (1976). Shakespeare and the Traditions of Comedy. Cambridge University Press. pp. 245–246. ISBN 978-0-521-29113-2.
- ^ Daley, Koos (1990). The Triple Fool: A Critical Evaluation of Constantijn Huygens' Translations of John Donne. De Graaf. p. 58. ISBN 978-90-6004-405-6.
Bibliography
- Jefferson, D. W. (1951). "Tristram Shandy and the Tradition of Learned Wit". Essays in Criticism. Vol. 1. pp. 225–49.
| Authority control databases: National |
|---|
