Laughing and Screaming

About the lecture

Considered abstractly, the emotions of horror and humor would appear to be extreme opposites. Humor relaxes us; horror stresses us. Horror makes us nervous; humor provides a safe place. Horror engenders fear; humor evaporates it. And yet, a close look at horror films reveals that horror and humor can co-exist in various ways. Typically, terrifying monsters, like the Mummy, can become comic butts when co-starring with buffoons like Abbott and Costello. Does this really happen with any frequency, and, if it does, how is it possible. This talk will attempt to answer both of these questions. 

Event details

Date: Wednesday 29 July 2026
Time: 5:45pm for 6pm lecture, followed by light refreshments from 7-8pm
Location: Room 1M16, 308 Queen Street, UQ Brisbane City (view map) 

All are welcome to attend our free event.

Enquiries: engagement@hass.uq.edu.au

About our speaker

Noël Carroll is a Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. He is the author of twenty-three books including The Philosophy of Horror: or Paradoxes of the Heart and Humor: A Very Short Introduction, and he has edited or co-edited nine anthologies including The Palgrave Handbook of the Philosophy of Film and Motion Pictures. In addition to being a philosopher he has been a journalist and he has written five motion picture documentaries.

About Daphne Mayo Visiting Fellowship

This lecture hosted by UQ's School of Communication and Arts is supported by the Daphne Mayo Visiting Fellowship

Daphne Mayo (1895-1982) was for much of her life Queensland’s best known artist and passionate advocate for the arts. To honour her profound contribution to the arts, UQ's School of Communication and Arts established the Daphne Mayo Visiting Fellowship in Visual Culture. The Visiting Fellowship is now a catalyst for dialogue and debate not only about art but also about art museums and galleries and art collecting and appreciation in the State.