-

In this experimental study we tried to find out the aesthetical principles in structuring verbal materials such as jokes, stories, and novels. In the first part of the experiment each subject is given ten jokes without wit elements and asked to complete them with appropriate wit s which wil l be selected among five alternatives given. One of every five alternative sentences was the original wit of respected joke, one was a wi t sentence prepared by experimenter as to make a contrast ending wit h the expectation of incomplete joke, and three others were ordinary responses. Subjects chose in all jokes these original and contrast alternatives as wit responses (two forms of completion for each joke). In the second part of the experiment subjects are given the task of finding appropriate completion forms for incomplete short stories. Some of the subjects completed these first halves without adding any element of novity but rather showing- the gradual development of the same series of events. The others completed the stories in such a way as to make a surprise effect after the first half. There was no significant difference between the tw o categories. In the thir d part of experiment the preference value of the t wo alternative completion forms was investigated. Most of the subjects found the contrasting completion forms more appropriate. In the fourth part we have made some speculations based on the conclusion drawn from the experiments with short stories. In summary it can be said that the essential element in humour is the arrival in any situation of the unexpected finale. In stories such a sharp contrast is not esential but novelty, change, and surprise play a greater part in the appreciation of aesthetic organizations.