Chapter 3, Intro. cont. & Chapter 1 - Rabelais in the History of Laughter Summary and Analysis

There is debate about what constitutes a novel in the relatively modern era of literature. This effort to standardize art forms has taken place more than once. There are certain elements of Rabelais' writing that have been referred to as "billingsgate elements." These are apparently indicated by a kind of vulgarity that is very much a part of the folk tradition. These "elements" have made it unusually difficult to read by more modern standards. The literary experts make an extra effort to make some sense of what happened. One of the basic facts is that in the sixteenth century the language of the folk is rather coarse. There is double-sidedness to most humor: it includes both praise and abuse as a...