The object of the work is laughter as social and cultural phenomenon of human existence. The goal of the work is a social-philosophic reflection of the socialization laughter as generalized social and cultural phenomenon of human existence in context of its functioning in stable and transitive states of social and cultural development. Methodological basis: the system analysis, comparative historical method, structural and functional analysis, comparative analysis method of historical retrospective, historical and philosophical reconstruction etc. The laughter was considered as generalized social and cultural phenomenon of human existence that in process of socialization and inclusion in social and cultural world appears as an attractor (agent) of changes in non-linear system “nature-person-society-culture”, as “switch” of social and cultural rhythm, provides transition from stable states of development to transitive states and vice versa, provides transformation of value paradigms, renewal of senses, importance, ideals; the laughter appears as natural regulator of balance, that balances out forces of renewal and self-protection of such complex self-organizing system. It is proved that in process of socialization the laughter gathers the place in structure of society and culture and obtains the subjective-objective relations with society and culture; the laughter appears not only factor of socialization and identification of people, different social communities, humanity on the whole, contribution to the changes of social and cultural dynamics, but also evolves influenced by outlined above dynamics; as a result, the laughter that holds constant its significant attributes (spontaneity, “borderness”, transgressiveness, ambivalence, creativeness, multifunctionality) also presents its numerous modes. The concept “modes of laughter” is constructed and the classification after essential criterion is given: by categories of comic, by subjects of the laughter, by the historical time, by functional orientation. On the base of social synergetic (I. Prigozhin, I. Stengers, S. Kudrumov, O. Knyazeva, J. Lotman, N. Khrenov and others) and Robert K. Merton’s functionalism methodology disclosed the mechanism of functioning of the laughter as an attractor in non-linear self-organizing social and cultural system; proved that due to ambivalence of the laughter in different historical periods it appears doubled – as affirmation/sacralization and destruction/profanation at once; social and cultural functioning of the laughter is presented with as dominant (revealed) as latent influence; determined the similarity of functioning of the laughter as an attractor of social and cultural dynamics under the terms of synergetic paradigm and archetypic trickster role in archaic mythology; shown that new scientific paradigm and ancient mythology complement each other effective about understanding of functional assignment of the laughter in society and culture. The conceptualization of gender socialization of the laughter in terms of analysis of three gender stereotypes (matriarchal, patriarchal, feministic (modern)) is accomplished. The character of the laughter functioning on level of social communities as intermediate level between person and society is defines. The system analysis of the laughter as an attribute of Ukrainian national identity formation is performed. The axiological function of the laughter in the inter-generational spacing is discovered by the example of three last generations of the end of XX – the beginning of XXI century. The system analysis of postmodern carnivalization phenomena is conducted, in particular: media landscape (sphere of political information sharing, corporeity, advertising), science, fashion, sport, leisure (clubbing, tourism), eschatology; it is defined that in dominate function the laughter according to regularities of its manifestation in transitive states infringed scripted norms and values in each of denoted spheres of social and cultural space, caused the supremacy of “fatiguing” festivity, however, in opposition of destructing consequences, in latent function it caused new useful senses and significances, in which contours of future paradigm are shown through. On the basis of J. Baudrillard’s methodology of algorithmization of the process of simulacrum forming the reconstruction of simulacrization of the laughter in a context of postmodern is performed. The philosophical anticipation of mechanism of “re-encoding” of unproductive examples of carnivalized, simulacrizationalized laughter is performed; it is proposed to use the matrix of mystery, the structure of which supposes the implication of carnivalized laughter and further transformation to the cathartic laughter, that is mediated by transcendental senses and that motivates to the new stage of social and cultural creation.
Sphere is the educational process and the social practices.
