“Comedy, beginning in turmoil but ending in harmony, celebrates life.” To what extent does The History Boys reflect that view? 7. “The setting of this play is central to its success as a comedy.” To what extent do you agree? 8. “Despite being performed entirely in French, the audience is able to understand the scene due to Bennett’s use of comedy devices.” Explore this statement with reference to comedy devices.
Whilst the topic is becoming more open, the ambiguity in how society perceives and understands the phenomenon still remains considerable. Alan Bennett takes the subject and adapts it to suit a modern day audience who seemingly take an interest in the sinister topic. Blurring the lines between drama and comedy, the two genres provide a captivating combination, subtly highlighting, in a way so refined and indirect, the social stigma attached to the subject. Although the nature of the play could be seen as somewhat disturbing, ‘The History Boys’2 does not fail to push the boundaries of this taboo subject. A subject that never fails to reach the nationals tabloids, evidenced by cases such as the 2012 Jimmy Saville sexual abuse scandal, whilst similarly finding its way into popular TV programmes such as ‘Family Guy’ and ‘The Inbetweeners’.
In the episode ‘Playing the Ego Card’, the truth is manipulated on several levels, to create a humorous, entertaining show. An example of the truth being manipulated is through the use of the satirical technique caricature. This technique is used towards the end off the episode, when
"Modern comedy is cruel and cynical” Barry Cryer. To what extent do you agree that cruelty and cynicism are at the heart of the comedy in ‘Educating Rita’? Cruelty and cynicism play a vital role in creating comedy in ‘Educating Rita’. Both of the characters have aspects of their lives that the audience can laugh at, however for a majority, it can be perceived as cruel due to the fact that most of the circumstances we laugh at negatively impact the lives of the characters. Willy Russell uses superiority theory to engage the audience by creating comedy through the misfortune of others.
A comparison of great satire A satire will always have several life lessons to teach. The question is, will it simply throw it in your face, or will it hit you from the side with laughter? Voltaire’s Candide and Kaufman’s You Can’t Take it with You are two of literature’s greatest satires. While both make similar points against society, they are very different in how they satirize the world. Voltaire uses Candide to throw his beliefs in the reader’s face with the radical extremes of his story.
The mechanicals are important in a midsummer night’s dream as they introduce the comedy of the piece. Scene one is extremely dramatic “Full of vexation" and this is juxtaposed by the humour of the mechanicals in scene two "let me not play a woman; I have a beard coming". Until there entrance it seems a romantic tragedy on a par with Romeo and Juliet, in a way the introduction of the mechanicals reassures the audience that it is in fact a comedy and allows them to laugh. The mechinals are Peter Quince, Nick Bottom, Francis Flute, Tom Snout, Robin Starvelling and Snug. Peter quince is one of the illustrious Mechanicals who puts on the play, Pyramus and Thisbe.
Since the play would be generally watched by the upper classes, Wilde implicitly mocked them through the use of excellent wits and epigrams. Paradoxes are also utilised in the play in many ways. Simon Bubb believes paradoxes are ‘self-contradictory and mischievously nonsensical. but provides a
As far as the comedy plot is concerned, there is the common trait that it connotes the comic poet’s view of the society but not like the tragedies, which were ultimately based on legend and myth. Thematic Content of the Comedy Aristophanes comedy was significantly characterized by comic fantasy. Ideally the plays presented problems in the society and ultimately offered plausible solutions in the most comical way
“The gulling of Malvolio is a joke that goes too far”. To what extent does Shakespeare blur the boundaries of comedy in his depiction of the gulling of Malvolio? The boundaries of comedy can sometimes be blurred as they range between light and dark comedy. Dark comedy is often used to dismember the potential discomfort an audience may feel should heavy moral subjects arise in pieces of art such as psychological impairment in Twelfth Night. Malvolio is used in Twelfth Night to personify the notion of Lent and order in the text and is the butt of the comedy in the sub-plot.
“A farce is [also] a comedy, a play, in which both subtle humor and hilarity are developed through improbable situations, exaggeration, and antics” (Clugston, 2010). Henri is a great example of this being that “farce are almost always guilty of excessive behavior” (Hayes, 2010. p. 25). It has to be over the top and ridiculous in order to be added to that genre. I also enjoyed it because it was easier to follow then