Genre & Form

Introduce comedy as a genre

How does drama differ from other forms of literature?

language Visual aspects- including set movement and Sound.

Is drama always interpreted in the same way?

What affects this?

Comedies are often staged to make them more relevant to present day audiences- be aware of the different interpretations that can be created in this way.

What is comedy?
Drama that makes us laugh. Why does it make us laugh?

 Often it is because comedy involves people caught in difficult situations that we find funny. We know that the situation they are in will most likely be resolved, but we enjoy seeing how they will cope with these difficulties. As an audience we put ourselves in their place and wonder what we would do in the same situation. In early and traditional dramatic comedies ( like those written by WS), the play usually ends with a marriage or similar celebratory event, sometimes accompanied by music and dance. Marriage is important because it suggests that a harmony has been reached and that the marriage might result in children for the future, so that society can continue to develop and grow.

Disorder
Often at the heart of comedy An inversion of the normal order o that everything in society moves out of harmony. Disorder can be amusing and funny, but it can also be threatening and dangerous. Only when this is overcome can things return to normality

To push comedy further

Comedies are not just about laughter.

KEY PREMISE
Human life and experience are actually a charade and that whenever civilisation reaches a point of order, human beings seemingly have a natural ability to be foolish and act stupidly. This characteristic is called folly

Do comedy dramatists write for a higher purpose?

Tragedy Overtime dramatists have illustrated that the human race is unlikely to change, and that human weakness will continue.

 Tragedies tend to show that people often face unalterable problems, comedies highlight that humans are in fact ridiculous and cannot change. Comedies, therefore, often confirm our view of the world.

Characteristics of dramatic comedy

Love is often a motivating force, and occasionally when people are in love or infatuated with someone else, they do foolish things

 Comedy shows that people do face difficult situations and serious problems, but also that human beings have a tendency to take themselves too seriously

 Some dramatic comedy intends to poke fun at the folly of human beings by using caricature

 Human endeavour is often seen as being pretentious and ludicrous, and therefore it should be exposed as foolish.

 Comedies often expose the foolishness of societies customs and manners or an eras rules and laws. Characters very often say one thing about these customs and rules but undermine them with their own behaviour

 Exaggeration of stereotypes are often used

 Sometimes characters are placed in bizarre and absurd situations that they are unable to escape from. This reflects how we all feel sometimes- that the order of the world is a veneer that can easily be removed

 The Seven Deadly Sins ( in particular pride, lust and greed) are all prime targets for satire within comic writing.