A Study Of Black Humor In Donald Barthelme’s Snow White

Donald Barthelme’s masterpiece Snow White parodies the classic fairy tale by adopting the elements of black humor so as to expose the absurdity and disorder of the American society in the1960s, thereby forming a unique style of black humor. Scholars at home and abroad have studied Barthelme’s Snow White from micro and macro points of view respectively, mainly focusing on its postmodern techniques, its contrast with Grimm’s fairy tale, and its pioneering spirit in theory. However, the novel’s elements of black humor have hardly been given adequate attention or study.Based upon the philosophical thoughts of Sartre’s existentialism and Camus’s theory of absurdity, black humor often describes the grotesque and morbid events in a light and teasing way to express the absurdity, paradox and cruelty of the modem society. This thesis attempts to elaborate on the features of black humor in Snow White from three aspects.First of all, in order to make a linguistic innovation, Barthelme does not conform to the rigid grammatical or linguistic rules so as to be coherent. He utilizes all sorts of postmodern techniques to the utmost extent such as fragmentation, collage, wordplay and irony in a humorous and ironical way. Secondly, the novel also employs anti-heroes to achieve effects of black humor. Barthelme portrays all the protagonists as anti-heroes. Anti-heroes, usually funny, absurd and ridiculous, are totally different from the Princess, the Prince and the Seven Dwarfs in Grimm’s Snow White who are the embodiments of truth, goodness and beauty. They are distorted into members in the postmodern society. Finally, Snow White highlights the black humor themes from three aspects:anti-fairy tale, absurd world and death. Snow White parodies Grimm’s fairy tale and subverts the illusion of the classic fairy tale by means of anti-fairy tale. Barthelme exposes the absurdity and chaos of the society, the world and even the life in terms of the abnormal characters and the chaotic structure. Death is the only acceptable destiny of human beings. Only through death can the protagonists escape reality and find a way out. In exploring these three themes, the author adopts a ridiculous, sarcastic and cynical tone, emphatically showing the features and effects of black humor.Those features of black humor in language, characterization and theme effectively prove that Barthelme’s Snow White is a novel of black humor. Black humor is a unique cultural product of the American crazy and absurd world. Black humor fiction has become the synonym for the American fiction in the1960s. History brings up the black humor in Snow White which, in turn, stores history by profoundly reflecting the contemporary American society.