literary form- comedy

COMEDY

What is comedy?

In ordinary English the words comedy and comic are used for anything that is funny or laughable. But the truth is that we use the word comedy in different and confusing way. Generally Comedy means a play which has a pleasant atmosphere and a happy ending. It may not actually make us laugh, but it must at least be amusing and entertaining. Even satirical, satire and comedy are closely related. Comedy is found in other forms of literature too.

Certain people and certain situation always seem to be funny,  mother-in-law,  an old man with young wife,  blind man,  odd behavior of lunatics. These people deserve sympathy rather than laughter, but they always seem funny to other world. They can be like all time comedians.

There is of course  no clear border line between comedy and satire. Even the lightest comedy must contain some kind of social comment as in 'comedy of manners',  but when a dramatist tries to to use the stage is the base of lectures,  sermons and propaganda. We must expect the death of true comedy. Less attractive features of drama between 1922 -1970 has been a continuing attempt by some writers and critics to persuade us that plays try to be profound or significant. Most of us do not go to theatre for advice about difficult problems of politics or morality. We are not interested in opinion,  there maybe place for the kind of drama that preaches in societies to who are illiterate like audience of miracle places in medieval time, but generally teaching and preaching are not part of true comedy.

Theories:

Laughter,  it must be admitted to be Cruel and harmful more than reliving comedy seems to be working on the Aristotle's theory of catharsis,  it provides us imaginary objects on which we laugh and perform cruelty without harming others and without shocking. More,  one can not laugh on own friend whose wife is having an affair with the other person, but can freely laugh on the stupid old husband in Chaucer's 'Miller tale'. The theory of laughter is also an expression of pleasure and thankfulness at one's own comparative good luck. To laugh at a fat woman is to express one's own satisfaction at not being a very fat women. We laugh at others misfortune it is because we observe ourselves happy and free of them. Laughter is not always cruel or selfish but there is a difference between laughing at somebody and laughing with somebody. Also,  there is no possibility of being witty without a little in nature. 

History:

History of comedy would have to begin with the ancient Greek COMOS (a revel) and the satyr play which were performed as the kind of comic relief.

Greek >  Comedy of Aristophanes (448-380 BC) [Satirical in tone and are still alive when performed in transition.] > Menander (340-292 BC). [He developed so called new comedy.] > Latin dramatist Plautus (254-184 BC) [It imitated Menander comedies.] > Terence (190-159 BC) [It resembled to what is called comedy of manners.]

The true origin of English comedy is to be found in the mystery place and miracle plays of middle ages. Mystery and miracle plays were based on the biblical stories for the lives of the saints.They were performed in large towns,  it showed the whole cycle from beginning with the story of Adam and Eve and ending the Christ crucifixion and resurrection. The plays were performed on heavy Wagons called 'pageant'. It had three stages presenting heaven,  Earth and hell. There were stations where it would stop and present its own particular play. Four mystery play still exist Chester, Coventry,  York and Wakefield.

In York play of Noah's flood for instance much comic relief is provided by Noah's wife,  who refuses to leave her gossip and go into the Ark of water rises. In the end She was forced by her three sons and Noah pulled her in boat and They had an argumental conversation.

In Wakefield play,  the ship stealer steals the ship when the shepherds were listening the news of Christ's birth. Mak's (the stealer) wife was admiring their new born child in cradle,  while the Shepherds were on the Way to Bethlehem. And they noticed that the child is strange and they realise it to be stolen ship. Then Mak was thrown about in the blanket as punishment. 

There are many such comedy play,  one cannot be failed to impress by the happy way in which two elements are mixed to create drama.

Three of the most popular characters in the mystery plays were king Herod,  the devil and the Vice. Herod was always shown as the comically angry Tyrant,  his rage. The devil wore an ugly mask and was given long fingernails. He was accompanied by a vice- a sort of lesser devil than having who danced around him and pretended to be threaten him with a wooden sword. Vice was to play a long and important part in the history of European comedy. He reappears in England as the Shakespearean down,  Often a clever amusing commentator on the other actors and events in the play. 

Types:

Romantic comedy:

It is the most popular form of Entertainment. Plays of romantic are very different play. It is a pleasant mixture of love and laughter, this plays are popular all over and it's not difficult to explain. The earliest English romantic comedy is probably 'Ralph Roister Doister' written by headmaster of Westminster school 12 years later. 'Gammer Gurton's Needle' produced at Christ College,  Cambridge. Both plays are farcial and has a love interest. 'The honorable history of Friar Bacon and Frian Bungay' by Robert Greene pattern of farcical  qualities with dialogue in prose,  mixed with the theme of love and romance expressed in verse 

Shakespeare carried romantic comedy almost to perfection during the period 1594-1602. The welknown romantic comedies are 'A midsummer Night's Dream', 'As you like it' and 'Twelfth night'. Comedy of this kind depend on good deal.

Midsummer Night's Dream: For example Theseus hippolyta story and the moonlight Mistakes of the lovers would probably seemed tedious sentimental if it was not the foolery of bottom and his friends. The latter might seem crudely farcial If not lightened by the poetry and romance of the lovers. The story of Titania and the changed  bottom makes a link between the two world and might be taken as and symbol of all comedy. 

Shakespeare was a practical playwright. He had to please to quite separate group of audience: educated and uneducated. Educated part of the audience liked fine poetry romance and touches of satire,  while others preferred partial humour and good natured clowning. After seeing aristocratic hippolyta seeing bottoms play Shakespeare himself apologised to the educated half of the audience. With changing time educated failed to enjoy the journey. The last three plays of Shakespeare's comedy 'The Tempest',  'Cymbeline',  'The winter's Tale' were designed for private performances rather than public playhouse,  have less farce and more poetry and romance than his earlier comedy. The Other writers of comedy in Shakespeare's time were Beaumont (1584-1616) and Fletcher (1579-1625) who worked together and Thomas Dekker ( 1570-1632). Dekker stressed the humorous and realistic element more than poetic 'The shoemaker's holiday' is one of the liveliest.

Shakespeare	Twelfth Night A midsummer night’s dream As you like it Cymbeline The winter’s tale The tempest
Goldsmith	She stoops to conquer
Wilde	The importance of being earnest
Shaw	Pygmalion
Noel Coward	Blithe spirit
Dekker	The shoemaker’s holiday
Robert Greene	The honourable history of Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay
Nicolas Udall	Gammer Gurton’s Needle Ralph Roister Doister

• Romantic comedies are famous because of Shakespeare's 'Twelfth night',  Goldsmith's 'She stoops to conquer' (1773), Noel Cowards 'Blithe spirit'(1941).

Comedy of humours:

Comedy of humours is used in connection to Ben Jonson. He had an eventful life. He had been in his long days a bricklayer and a soldier. He also have been a productive writer. Not only play but also masques,  poetry and criticism. Johnson's idea was that comedy should not be true to life but larger-than-life. Each character should be so much real men or women as a personification of some human passion or weakness. His comedies are, every man in his humour', 'every man out of his humour,',  'the silent woman',  'Volpone',  'The Alchemist' and 'Bartholomew fair'. Hear the humour has a special use. It is not used in modern sense but in sense of a dominant passion for obsession.
In 'Every man in his humour' the richest merchant, Kietly has a young and Pretty wife of whom he is jealous,  jealousy in his humour; Young heroes father is always worried about his son's behaviour and safety,  anxiety is humour; Captain is the talkative but coward old soldier, boastfulness is humour. The passion that rule characters whole life is humour. In Bartholomew fair Johnson shows us how to humans of various types of Londoners are taken advantage of by the hard headed and quick witted market people. 

Johnson invented his characters and constructed his plays,  characters like boastful soldier,  jealous husband,  etc but the new was the scientific support which Johnson was found of he borrowed it from the believes of medieval doctors and scientist,  who thought human body is made up of four humours which is corresponding to four elements in physical World- Earth,  air,  fire and water. Men's Health and his whole character depends on the balance between the four humours in his body too much of choleric humour (anger,  fire) made a man energetic and hot tempered,  too much of lymphatic (water) human make him cold and spiritless. Johnson found it useful as a support for his theory. 

Johnson's importance depend on the success as a comic dramatist and not because of his theories. His comedies are seen on the stage. In comparison to Shakespeare's romantic comedies Johnson's comedy of humours are seemed to be more acceptable perhaps because romantic comedy is out of fashion.

Ben Johnson

Every man in his humour Every man out of his humour The silent women Volpone The alchemist Bartholomew

Comedy of manners:

This phrase is often used in literary history and criticism. It is particularly applied to Restoration dramatist in England. It makes fun not so much of individual human beings and their humours as a social groups and their  fashionable manners. It is generally more or less satirical to in a good-natured way. They were likely found in aristocratic group like the court of Charles II in England or Louis XIV in France. Congreve (1672 -1729) and Wycherley (1642-1716),  later Sheridan (1751-1816) and Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) are famous for comedy of manners. Critics who object to the low moral tone of much Restoration comedy forget that Wycherley, in 'the country wife' should the moral weakness of a particular social group.
Sheridan was doing same in 'The school for scandal' where no one complaint  for the Immoral behaviour of lady Sneerwell  and sir Benjamin Baebite- persumable because it is not sexually Immoral. It was hardness and cynicism of the typical restoration comedy as well as indecency and permissiveness which led Jeremy to persuade public that the theatre needed to be cleaned up and wrote 'short view of the immorality and profaneness of the English stage'. Generally criticised Congreve and Wycherley for their plays.

Wycherley	The country wife
Sheridan	The school of scandal
Collier	Short view of the immorality and profaneness of the English stage

Sentimental comedy:

Jeremy Collier,  a church man and a Puritan was critical to plays of Wycherley and Congreve  and the hardness,  indecency,  cynicism and permissiveness led him to write his short view of the immorality and profoundness of the English stage. He persuaded public the theatre need to be cleaned up and as a result sentimental comedy appeared. Here the word sentimental is used in an unusual sense or sentimental comedy was returned with the intention of expressing moral sentiments. In other words In contained preaching even though the preaching was disguised as entertainment. Sir Richard Steele (1672-1729) was the chief writer. He best remembered as the essayist and journalist. Agreed to Collier that English stage needed cleaning up. He thought that the cleaning up would best be done by writing new plays rather than attacking old one,  He wrote 'The funeral'. In 1722 produced 'the conscious lovers' and after these sentimental comedies seized for some two centuries to be taken seriously. L.J Potts, in his book 'Comedy' (1949) described these plays as a display of naked and immoderate virtue such as the modern audience would not endure. It was amusingly satirised by several comic writers of the by time.

Dark/black comedy:

There are many plays which do not belong to any of the classes,  which may not even be funny or amusing all cheerful, but go under the name of comedy. Shakespeare's 'measure for measure' and Eliot's 'the cocktail party' for example might not be called comedy but they have very little in common with each other or even less with place like Sheridan's 'the Rivals' or Rattigan's 'French'. No ready made name to attach this kind of play. Critics and historians used phrases like tragicomedy, comic tragedy or simply drama. In the present century there has been a rebirth of sentimental comedy but under new name and new form. The drama of social consciousness and the drama of commitment are phrases used by critics and writer who felt like Steele that 'comedy should be morally in instructive as well as inter entertaining' Wilde, Sir James Barrie,  Sir Noel and sir Terence Rattigan was criticised for being frivolous and for having no social purpose, where is Shaw has been praised for using comedy as propaganda for his own opinion. While German dramatist Brecht (1898-1956) was encouraged in England and America to think that drama ought to be concerned with political and social problems not actually protect propagandist. these perhaps have led to the death of true comedy and sentimental comedy lead to the death of Genuine comedy of Wycherley and Congreve.

Shakespeare: 

 the best introduction to the dark comedy can be heard by reading Shakespeare's 'measure for measure' and 'Troilus and Cressida'. And comparing them with better known romantic comedy like 'the taming of the Shrew', or 'A midsummer Night's Dream'. The first two are  cynical and unpleasant for the readers of romantic comedy. 

Troilus and Cressida: it is a bitter attack on the weakness of human nature. Almost every character same to be wicked. This is not a sort of play from which one gets many good laugh though  modern produces have tried hard to made it so 

Iliad: Achilles,  hector,  Ajax,  Diameles are heroes in the eyes of Shakespeare's thersites. He sees whole story of the war over the beautiful Helen in such patchery,  juggling and knavery.

Measures for measure: Besides being an interesting study of a Angela man who would now be called sexual psycho path contains much discussion of serious moral and intellectual problems. This both plays are article of darker side of comedy. 

John Osborne:

 He was born a 1929. He was actor before he became dramatist. He wrote to historical Plays 'Luther' and 'a patriot for me', as well as dark comedies, like 'Epithet of George Dillon' and 'the Entertainer' and 'inadmissible evidence'. His work 'Look Back in Anger' first seen on the London became clear that a new age in the story of English drama of beginning. The importance of it was not that it is a better play, but that it introduced new king of drama to the English stage. If it is comedy then it must not be mistaken as comedies of Sheridan or Wild.
Look Back in Anger: The subject is the hidden class war between those who have grown up in comfortable Borgeis homes and those who had fought their way up in Social stairs by their own intelligence. Osborne shows us something of the married life of a young man of the latter type and his wife -a girl of equal intelligence but higher social class who is unable to understand his anger and frustration.

The phrase angry young men become popular as a description of writers who were unhappy about the Injustice and inequality which it still seemed to exist in Britain. Despite of the recent victory of democracy.

Arnold Wesker:

Born a 1932 wrote 'the kitchen' which was actually that in the kitchen of a London restaurant and show the relations both tragic and comic between the people working there. He seems to be the most important dramatist of the dark comedy. He is probably the most readable. His 3 plays 'kitchen soup with barley',  'roots' and 'I am talking about Jerusalem'started in 1950 and are concerned with Jewish family from east end of London the trilogy shows a group of people who are being physically loving and ideal stick trying in a small way to improve the world and build a better life for themselves, but generally defeated and frustrated by hard facts of life and human nature. Wesker's trilogy seems to have unusual mixture of comedy and tragedy social consciousness and human warmth.

Theatre of absurd:

Some of the most successful of the younger dramatist have been much influenced by so called  theatre of absurd (illogical). It's uncertain who invented this phrase but these kind of play began in France with the works of Eugene Ionesco and Samuel Beckett. 

Samuel Beckett:

Samuel Beckett is an Irish man who lived in Paris and wrote play in French. Audience has found it puzzling but was extremely successful, he became as one of the chief influence in English experimental theatre.
'Waiting for Godot' Was performed in England 1950.
'End game' (1957) the character lived in Dustbin and the audience sees only their heads and shoulders.
'Happy Days',  women who was almost the only speaking character is slowly buried in sand until at the end of the play only her head is visible.
'Come and go' there is no action only 121 words.

Harold Pinter:

Harold Pinter's play 'The birthday party 'was part of absurdity theatre. The writers of the theatre of the Absurd are in the happy position beyond all question and criticism as people were willing to see their play. A woman wrote a letter to Harold Pinter after watching play the birthday party. She asked the meaning of play and the two points, which she could not understand.
1.Who are the two men?
2. Where did Stanley come from?
3.Were they all supposed to be normal?
And Pinter replied- Asked Ma'am To explain the meaning of the letter and who are you?
2.Where did you come from?
3.Are you supposed to be normal?
After Pinter the chief writer to use ideas of the theatre of the Absurd in 1960s were:

Jean Baptiste Poquelin:

Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (1622-73) Was  French playwright known to the world under the name of Moliere. Most of his play were returned for performance at the court of the French King Louis XIV. Moliere works in little comedy called L'Amour Medicin (Loves the best doctor) emphasises as strongly as possible that stage comedies are intended to be active. Moliere himself was an actor and a writer. It can be proved by reading his other works like 'The Miser' (L'A vare) Or 'world be gentlemen '(Le bourgeois gentlihomme).

Sheridan:

He was not an actor, but he had a good sense of theatre for he became part- owner of Deury theatre in London, and as a member of parliament knew how to obtain dramatic effects. He wrote his first play as age of 24 years 'The rivals'. It is a good example of comedy of manners,  to be heard and seen not merely read. The rivals invites us to laugh at the social conventions of the duel. When the play appeared in 1770s duelling was in common, even Sheridan fought to duel in France. However in England people began to realise it to be a bad habit and that the idea of gentleman being obliged to fight about Matters of imaginary honour was Not only uncivilised but also ridiculous.

Comedy in novel:

Comedy is almost always taken to mean a stage comedy but comedy itself is something to be found in other forms of literature, especially the novel. George Meredith as a novelist give one of the best descriptions of the comedy spirit in his 'essay on Comedy', but we scarcely disagree with his very thoughtful description of comic view of life.

Non dramatic comedy: 

World's greatest Masterpiece of non-dramatic comedy is 'Don Quixote De la Mancha' 1605 by Miguel DE Cervantes. According to L.J. Potts significance of story lies between Quixote's nobility of mind and his absurdity of Behaving and between Sanchi's cynical peasant selfishness and his irrational behaviour loyalty to his master. Conceiving the most famous characters in the literature,  Cervantes divided the whole human nature in two  with the neatness of a surgeon's knife. 

It is to remember that To great comic novel is merely funny. Indeed a book which sets out to be purely comic is likely to be failure; The comedy must be mixed with Pathos and humour and human so that we love what we love at and laugh at what we love. 

The tradition of English comic novel is largely by Cervantes,  taking it from Dickens followed by Smollett,  Sterne,  Goldsmith,  Elliot and Trollop.

Chaucer:

He is unique among major English poets in being also comic writer. In The Canterbury Tales include the whole range of comedy and lively farce of the miller's tale to the delicate mixture of romance and comedy in the Franklin's tale and artificial humour in the prologue.

The nun's priest's tale: Chaucer's comic Masterpiece is 'the nun's priest's tale' is of Chanticleer. Chanticleer and his wife Pertelote. Chanticleer wakes up one morning distressed by a terrifying dream in which He has seen a dog like animal with burning eyes about to attack him Pertelote his favourite by among 7 wife comforts him by saying that he had an upset stomach and that some medicine will soon put him right. Chanticleer feels better and soon walks towards the yard,  to his great surprise finds himself face to face with sir Russel,  The fox,  terrified, he is about to fly away. when sir Russel addresses him with a politest tone,  praising his voice and appearance and referring with respect and admiration of his father to whom Russell had made an enjoyable dinner. Chanticleer is easily persuaded to show that he is a good singer as his father was he shut his eyes and open the mouth he was seized by the throat and carried towards the Woods. Chanticleer helpless in Fox mouth has to admit that he is fairly Caught but he says Russell l,  "if I were in your position I should want to turn back and laugh at my pursuers." This is what exactly fox does and Chanticleer escaping from the teeth flies to the safety of a high tree.

The moral of fable- don't shut your eyes when they are both to keep them open and don't open your mouth when you go to keep it shut.

The comedy in the nun's priest's tale lies partly in the story itself, but mainly in Chaucer's way of treating it. The character talk and behave like recognisable types of human being. Chanticleer is a pompous s middle age gentleman,  Pertelote is a hard headed but kind wife who knows exactly how to manage him and Russel is a persuasive,  confidence man- all typical characters. The mock philosophical discussion display of the learning,  the entertaining digressions and the comical irony of which Chaucer is a master.

Dickens:

Dickens is certainly the great English master of comedy in the novel, though with the exception of the Pickwick papers more of his major works is wholly comic in intention. Generally,  the book wholly is likely to be failure and it may be that Pickwick is the exception. One can admire to wide range of emotions expressed from the most deep tragedy the most absurd and farcial. He gives us comedy as set in life not in isolation, but shining out of the Dullness  of everyday work for breaking through the gloom of even the most serious tragedy. He invented in his comics the very kind of human creature ranging from the grotesque evil to the lovable lovable absurdity. It has been objected that Dickens characters are near caricatures, but he proves that there is no human oddity in any case. The writer of comedy is under no obligation to give us character which are rounded and whole. Dickens owed a great deal to his illustrators  in no way to distract from his creative genius, but it is a fact that the drawing of character have helps to fix the his characters in our imagination in such a way that they seem almost more real than the people we meet everyday. All the characters by Dickens are colourful and alive,  all mixed with the normal characters whose adventures provide the plots of the novels. The comic genius of Dickens was often used in satire. He is indeed with Chaucer,  an outstanding example of the fact that humour is probably the most powerful weapon in the satirist armoury.

The Pickwick paper: A famous case of Bardall versus Pickwick,  Pickwick's landlady Mrs. Bardall encouraged by the villainous of lawyers Dodson and Fog,  claims on him because he has broken his promise to marry her. Mrs. Bardall lawyer produces a notice which Mrs Bardall has displaced in the window of a house in Goswell street.

Play in book and play on stage:
The proper relationship between play in book and play on the stage or screen is often forgotten especially by reader and writer of this kind of book. Play is a like Symphony on score paper: the real symphony is what we hear in the concert halls interpreted by conductor and orchestra. The real play is what we see and hear on the stage,  interpreted by actors and produces,  with the help of scene designers,  costume designers,  makeup artist and other technical and artistic exports. So when we are reading a play especially comedy one should try to think of it in terms of sound and movement.