Meisosis. Its importance to British humour cannot be overstated…

Mr Leacock writes about meiosis or understatement, which is a feature of British humor. He writes of “a superb piece of humour My Lady Nicotine, the appearance of which in 1888 indicated in James Barrie a new star on the horizon. One recalls the exquisite narrative of the killing of the editor.

“Here is what purports to be a part of the evidence given at the inquest held on the editor’s body. Witness deposed:

“I heard voices in altercation in a room near me. I thought that was likely to be the editors. I iopened the door and went in. He had the editor on the floor and was jumping on him. I said, “Is that the editor?” He said, “Yes.” I said, “Have you killed him?” He said “Yes,” again. I said, “Oh!” and went away. That is all I remember of the affair.

“Cross-examined. It did not occur to me to interfere. I thought very little of the affair at the time. I think I mentioned it to my wife in the evening . But I will not swear to that.

“Indeed the whole book My Lady Nicotine is a sustained piece of meisosis – the understatement of life, the understatement of effort, the minimisation of energy. Here is Scrymgeour who can’t bother to make the effort to correct a friend who asks after his “brother Henry” (he had none) and thus brings into mythical existence a brother who haunts his life. Here is Moggridge, who forgets to water the chrysanthemum.”

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