Elliott Oring asks essential questions concerning humorous expression in contemporary society, examining how humour works, why it is employed, and what its messages might be. This provocative book is filled with examples of jokes and riddles that reveal humour to be a meaningful - even significant - form of expression. Oring provides alternate ways of thinking about humorous expressions by examining their contexts - not just their contents. "Engaging Humor" demonstrates that when analyzed contextually and comparatively, humorous expressions emerge as communications that are startling, intriguing, and profound.