Hate in the Novels and Short Stories of P. G. Wodehouse: Psychologically Sublimated or Downplayed Through Humour?
Hate in the Novels and Short Stories of P. G. Wodehouse: Psychologically Sublimated or Downplayed Through Humour?

Summary/Abstract: Whether seen as an emotion or a long term sentiment, hate is in itself a motivator for destruction. This means that the hate target is assessed as having innate negative characteristics that cannot be changed and therefore the target has to be destroyed. Consequently, hate implies that some individuals are not given the chance to become better human beings or are denied the right to try to change for the better. It may also imply the perception that some individuals deserve to be hated and thus destroyed physically, socially, or symbolically. It goes without saying that in an ideal world intergroup hate and hate in interpersonal relationships do not exist. However, since unfortunately hate does exist in our world, the question that arises is: Is it worth feeding on such a negative emotion? Could people find a way to laugh about their hate and their goals associated with hate in order to contain their hostility towards the persons of hatred? In this paper we aim to analyse the way in which P. G. Wodehouse, “the greatest humorous writer the world has ever known” (Connolly, 2004: 1), succeeds in pointing out the ludicrous futility of hate and of its expression in interpersonal relationships.

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