Laughter That Does Not Always Side with the Authorities

Review of: Neringa Klumbytė,  Autoritarinis juokas: politinis humoras ir sovietinė distopija Lietuvoje / translated from English by Daiva Litvinskaitė, Vilnius: Lietuvos nacionalinės Martyno Mažvydo bibliotekos Mokslo ir enciklopedijų leidybos centras, 2024. – 344 p. ISBN 978-5-420-01872-9

Abstract

The reviewer examines Neringa Klumbytė’s monograph “Autoritarinis juokas: politinis humoras ir sovietinė distopija Lietuvoje” (Authoritarian Laughter: Political Humor and Soviet Dystopia in Lithuania, 2022; translation from English—Vilnius: Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania Science and Encyclopedia Publishing Center, 2024). The monograph is an anthropological analysis of the culture of humor in Soviet-era Lithuania that links it to the content of Šluota, the only Lithuanian humor and satire magazine published by the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Lithuania in 1956–1990. Klumbytė’s study is based on extensive archival material, interviews, and theories of laughter. Original concepts such as “multidirectional laughter,” “political intimacy,” and others allow for a nuanced understanding of how officially controlled humor during the Soviet era could not only benefit the regime but also become a subtle form of resistance that strengthened readers’ critical thinking and their national identity. The monograph falls short of a broader comparative international context (Soviet bloc countries). It is crowded with redundant details, and does not fully reveal the motives behind the behavior of the creators of Šluota. Nevertheless, the book is a significant contribution to research into everyday life and cultural resistance in Soviet-era Lithuania, and it also broadens the scope of analysis of authoritarianism.