Ingrid Winterbach's novels especially the latest novels since Die boek van toeval en toeverlaat are characterised by an unconventional sense of humour. Although the comic aspects of her work are frequently referred to, no systematic research of the specific comic aspects of her work has been undertaken to date, despite humour being a striking part of her work. Almost everyone who conducts research on the comical reflects on the issue that any scientific study of humour usually negates the humour of the subject matter. The many divergent attempts to create a theory of humour in literature were split into three useful groups by Perks (2012). Some theories address incongruency, others degradation, and the third group of theories discusses the relief associated with the comical. This interpretation of the theories of humour is used in this study to discuss the humour in three of Winterbach's novels. Although it is possible to discuss many of the situations that arise in the novels in terms of incongruency, degradation, or relief (often by using all three theories), it is readily apparent that Winterbach's unique sense of humour is not sufficiently captured by using just these theories. To investigate the effect of humour in Winterbach's novels, the interpretation of humour, as suggested by Milan Kundera in Testaments betrayed (1993), is used, wherein the Czech writer describes humour as a specific species of the comic that renders ambiguous everything it touches. This ambiguity that is created by the comical plays a central part in Winterbach's work.
Ingrid Winterbach se romans veral die laaste romans sedert Die boek van toeval en toeverlaat word deur 'n aweregse humorsin gekenmerk. Hoewel daar dikwels na komiese aspekte van haar werk verwys word, is geen stelselmatige ondersoek van spesifiek die komiese aspekte van haar werk tot dusver onderneem nie, terwyl dit 'n besonder opvallende kenmerk van Winterbach se werk is. Byna almal wat oor die komiese navorsing doen, wys op die probleem wat daarmee ontstaan aangesien 'n wetenskaplike studie juis dikwels die komiese ondermyn. Die talle uiteenlopende pogings om die komiese in letterkunde te teoretiseer, word deur Perks (2012) op 'n nuttige wyse in drie groepe gedeel. Sommige teorieë fokus op onversoenbaarheid, ander op degradasie, en 'n derde groep teorieë is gemoeid met die ontlading wat die komiese sou bied. Hierdie verdeling van teorieë rakende die komiese word in hierdie studie benut om die komiese in drie Winterbach-romans te beskryf. Hoewel dit moontlik is om talle komiese situasies in die drie romans deur middel van onversoenbaarheidsteorieë, degradasieteorieë, en ontladingsteorieë te beskryf (dikwels kan dieselfde situasie trouens deur al drie teorieë beskryf word), blyk dit gou dat Winterbach se kenmerkende humor nie genoegsaam daardeur beskryf kan word nie. Om die effek van humor in Winterbach se romans te ondersoek, word aangesluit by Milan Kundera se beskouing van humor in Testaments betrayed (1993), waarin die Tsjeggiese skrywer humor beskryf as 'n spesifieke "spesie" van die komiese wat meerduidigheid veroorsaak. Hierdie meerduidigheid wat deur die komiese bewerkstellig word, speel 'n sentrale rol in Winterbach se werk.
