_____________________________________________________________________________________ Akademik Sosyal Araştırmalar Dergisi, Yıl: 7, Sayı: 96, Eylül 2019, s. 42-59 ISSN: 2148-2489 Doi Number: http://dx.doi.org/10.29228/ASOS.36622 Yayın Geliş Tarihi / Article Arrival Date Yayınlanma Tarihi / The Publication Date 8.05.2019 29.09.2019 Associate Prof. Dr. Yahya Salim SULEIMAN ISSA Jordan University, Faculty of Arts and Design, Department of Theater Art dryahya_bashtawi@yahoo.com THE PHILOSOPHY OF LAUGHTER WITHIN THE STRUCTURE OF THEATER COMEDY Abstract This study investigated the philosophy of laughter and its relation to the structure of comedy in the theater. The research initially addressed the concept of laughter in the theories of philosophy and psychology. The theory of laughter and its relation to comedy had significant intention by philosophers and scholars. The concept of comedy influenced the lives of individuals and communities and linked to the act of laughter in order to criticize the unusual situations, and consequently the comedy played a corrective role on social errors, and through different approaches that were formed through the stages of its philosophical development, such as Comedy related to: moods, behavior, attitude, humor, improvisation, and others. Keywords: laughter, comedy structure, Greek comedy, Aristotle, Bergson.