Description: A grand ironic prank-story that proclaims “sentimentalism” (shendizm) as a way of life.
“Long live joy! Down with sorrow!”
Humor, in Laurence Sterne’s view, is the beginning of all beginnings—because it helps a person reveal themselves as an individual and find the right perspective on life.
The entire book “The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman” is a grand ironic prank-story that depicts several years in the life of the Shandy family. Sterne proclaims “sentimentalism” (“eccentricities”) as a way of life and embraces it himself—and also offers readers it as a magical pill for life’s burdens.