From the coronation of Louis XIV until the time of la Grande Revolution a century and a half later, wit was the comedic form de rigeur in France. In fact, the French--who, to my mind, are typically less anal than many of their European neighbors--were very meticulous when it came to defining types of humor. Wit, for example, was very different from punning, satire, sarcasm, and irony. (The film Ridicule tackles the topic quite well--with the aid of the always-entertaining Fanny Ardant.) What's most interesting, though, is that the rise in popularity of wit wasn't a random social trend--it had everything to do with fashion and politics.
Thanks to Louis XIV's reinvention of Versailles as the center of aristocratic life, noblemen and noblewomen from across the empire suddenly found themselves crammed together into one palace. Whereas before they were free to carry out their political posturing from a distance, now they had to do so face-to-face. Appearance was everything. Not surprisingly, folks--especially court women--went to greater and greater lengths to get noticed by the king.
Wit helped maintain a courtier's facade of sophistication. On one level, "getting the joke" proved your intellectual prowess. But more importantly, it kept your teeth out of view. While other forms of humor could result in an outright belly-laugh, witticisms evoked little more than a smile. That's important at a time when toothbrushes were unknown. I mean, really, how can you impress le roi with a checkerboard grin?
Wit's popularity has come and gone since then. Oscar Wilde had it. So did Dorothy Parker. But with the increased popularity of mass entertainment (e.g. Hollywood) that aims to entertain the lowest common denominator, wit has been on the wane for some time. In fact, these days wit is often suspect; it implies bitterness, world-weariness, effeteness, and debauchery. In films, it's usually the villains who are witty (e.g. "Scar" in The Lion King and nearly any of James Bond's nemeses).
So it's nice to know that despite all that, some people are keeping wit alive.
