John Christopher Hughes "Christie" Davies (25 December 1941 – 26 August 2017) was a British sociologist,
professor emeritus
''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retirement, retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus".
...
of sociology at the
University of Reading
The University of Reading is a public research university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as the University Extension College, Reading, an extension college of Christchurch College, Oxford, and became University College, ...
, England, the author of many articles and books on criminology, the sociology of morality, censorship, and humour. He was also a visiting professor in India, Poland, United States, and Australia.''The Mirth of Nations'' book cover
Early life
He was born John Christopher Hughes Davies in Cheam, Surrey. His parents were Welsh, his father an inspector of schools and mother a teacher. He attended secondary school at Dynevor School in Swansea, Wales. He then studied at Emmanuel College, Cambridge (taking part alongside Germaine Greer,
Clive James
Clive James (born Vivian Leopold James; 7 October 1939 – 24 November 2019) was an Australian critic, journalist, broadcaster, writer and lyricist who lived and worked in the United Kingdom from 1962 until his death in 2019.Eric Idle in the Cambridge Footlights) and graduated with a double first in Economics. In later life, Davies received a PhD from the same university (
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
) based on his published works.
Career
In 1964, Davies taught economics at the
University of Adelaide
The University of Adelaide is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. Its main campus in the Adelaide city centre includes many Sa ...
,
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...
. After coming back to the UK, he spent two years at the
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
as a radio producer. He then returned to the academia, lecturing at the
University of Leeds
The University of Leeds is a public research university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1874 as the Yorkshire College of Science. In 1884, it merged with the Leeds School of Medicine (established 1831) and was renamed Y ...
for three years, followed by a stint as a visiting lecturer in India. In 1972 he joined the
University of Reading
The University of Reading is a public research university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as the University Extension College, Reading, an extension college of Christchurch College, Oxford, and became University College, ...
as a lecturer in sociology, receiving promotion to a professor in 1984. In 2002 he retired and was appointed professor emeritus at the same university.
In addition to numerous works on humour, censorship and morality, Davies also published a collection of humorous fantasy stories titled ''Dewi the Dragon''.
Humour research
In his 2002 book ''The Mirth of Nations'', Davies criticised the theories which derive humor from conflict and superiority, and argued instead that humor is a form of
play
Play most commonly refers to:
* Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment
* Play (theatre), a work of drama
Play may refer also to:
Computers and technology
* Google Play, a digital content service
* Play Framework, a Java framework
* P ...
– a play with aggression, superiority, and taboo-breaking. He also argued against the Freudian theory about Jewish jokes being mostly self-deprecating, claiming that instead they are based on the cultural tradition of analytical thinking and self-awareness. American folklorist Alan Dundes called the book "the provocative critique of previous scholarship on the subject". In his book ''Jokes and Targets'', he defends what are now considered politically incorrect jokes or even hate speech, claiming that: “Those in a free society who seek to restrain individuals from sharing jokes of which they disapprove are as misguided and intrusive as their Soviet counterparts and about as likely to succeed.”
Davies was past president of the International Society for Humor Studies.
Resettling Hong Kong inhabitants in Northern Ireland
In 1983, Davies warned that when Britain handed Hong Kong back to
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
in 1997 there would be no future for its 5.5 million inhabitants. He jokingly suggested a new "city state" could be created near Magilligan Point in between
Coleraine
Coleraine ( ; from , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, No ...
and
Derry
Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...
for resettling Hong Kong inhabitants. Files from The National Archives show that the idea triggered some debate among Whitehall mandarins. David Snoxell, a retired diplomat who took part in the debates revealed it was "a spoof between colleagues who had a sense of humour".
Books
*1973: ''Wrongful Imprisonment''
*1973: ''The Reactionary Joke Book'',
*1975: ''Permissive Britain: Social change in the Sixties and Seventies''
*1978: ''Censorship and Obscenity''
*1990, 1996: ''Ethnic Humor Around the World: a Comparative Analysis'',
*1998: ''Jokes and their Relation to Society''
*1998: ''The Corporation under Siege''
*2002: ''The Mirth of Nations'', ; a social and historical study of jokes told in the English-speaking countries, based on archives and other primary sources, including old and rare joke books.
*2003: (with Goh Abe) ''Esuniku Joku'',
Kodansha
is a Japanese privately held publishing company headquartered in Bunkyō, Tokyo. Kodansha publishes manga magazines which include ''Nakayoshi'', ''Morning (magazine), Morning'', ''Afternoon (magazine), Afternoon'', ''Evening (magazine), Eveni ...
Ethnic joke
An ethnic joke is a remark aiming at humor relating to an ethnic, racial or cultural group, often referring to an ethnic stereotype of the group in question for its punchline.
Perceptions of ethnic jokes are ambivalent. Christie Davies gives ex ...
"
*2005: ''Jokes and groups''. Monograph Series, 44. Institute for Cultural Research, London,
*2005, ''Dewi the Dragon'', a collection of humorous fantasy stories
*2006: ''The Strange Death of Moral Britain''
*2011: ''Jokes and Targets'', Indiana University Press,