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Comedy

Definition of Comedy

Comedy is a literary genre and a type of dramatic work that is amusing and satirical in its tone, mostly having cheerful ending. The motif of this dramatic work is triumph over unpleasant circumstance by which to create comic effects, resulting in happy or successful conclusion. Thus, the purpose of comedy is to amuse the audience. Comedy has multiple sub-genres depending upon source of humor,context in which an author delivers dialogues, and delivery method, which include farce, satire and burlesque.Tragedy, in contrast, is opposite to comedy, as tragedy deals with sorrowful and tragic events in a story.

Types of Comedy

There are five types of comedy in literature:

Romantic Comedy

This type of drama involves the theme of love leading to happy conclusion. We find romantic comedy in Shakespearean plays and some Elizabethan contemporaries. These plays are concerned with idealized love affairs. It is a fact that the true love never runs smooth; however, love overcomes the difficulties and ends in a happy union.

Comedy of Humors

Ben Johnson is the first dramatist, who conceived and popularized this dramatic genre during late sixteenth century. The term humor derives from Latin word‘humor’ that means liquid. It comes from a theory that human body has four liquids or humors, which include phelgm, blood, yellow bile and black bile. It explains that when human beings have balance of these humors in their bodies, they remain healthy.

Comedy of Manners

This form of dramatic genre deals with intrigues and relations of ladies and gentlemen, living in a sophisticated society. This form relies upon high comedy, derived from sparkle and wit of dialogues, violations of social traditions, and good manners by nonsense characters like jealous husbands, wives and foppish dandies. We find its use in Restoration dramatists, particularly in the works of Wycherley and Congreve.

Sentimental Comedy

Sentimental drama contains both comedy and sentimental tragedy. It appears in literary circle due to reaction of middle class against obscenity and indecency of Restoration Comedy of Manners. This form gained popularity among the middle class audiences in eighteenth century. This drama incorporates scenes with extreme emotions evoking excessive pity.

Tragicomedy

This dramatic genre contains both tragic and comedic elements. It blends both elements to lighten an overall mood of the play. Often, tragicomedy is a serious play ends happily. Comedy Examples from Literature Example 1 William Shakespeare’s play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, is a good example of a romantic comedy, presenting young lovers falling comically in and out of love for a brief period. Their real world problems get resolved magically, enemies reconcile and true lovers unite in the end.

Function of Comedy

Comedy tends to bring humor and induce laughter in plays, films and theaters. The primary function of comedy is to amuse and entertain the audience, while it also portrays social institutions and persons as corrupt and ridicules them through satirizing, parodying and poking fun at their vices. By doing this, the authors expose foibles and follies of individuals and society by using comic elements Comedy Definition of Comedy Comedy is a literary genre and a type of dramatic work that is amusing and satirical in its tone, mostly having cheerful ending. The motif of this dramatic work is triumph over unpleasant circumstance by which to create comic effects, resulting in happy or successful conclusion. Thus, the purpose of comedy is to amuse the audience. Comedy has multiple sub-genres depending upon source of humor,context in which an author delivers dialogues, and delivery method, which include farce, satire and burlesque.Tragedy, in contrast, is opposite to comedy, as tragedy deals with sorrowful and tragic events in a story. Types of Comedy There are five types of comedy in literature: Romantic Comedy This type of drama involves the theme of love leading to happy conclusion. We find romantic comedy in Shakespearean plays and some Elizabethan contemporaries. These plays are concerned with idealized love affairs. It is a fact that the true love never runs smooth; however, love overcomes the difficulties and ends in a happy union. Comedy of Humors Ben Johnson is the first dramatist, who conceived and popularized this dramatic genre during late sixteenth century. The term humor derives from Latin word‘humor’ that means liquid. It comes from a theory that human body has four liquids or humors, which include phelgm, blood, yellow bile and black bile. It explains that when human beings have balance of these humors in their bodies, they remain healthy. Comedy of Manners This form of dramatic genre deals with intrigues and relations of ladies and gentlemen, living in a sophisticated society. This form relies upon high comedy, derived from sparkle and wit of dialogues, violations of social traditions, and good manners by nonsense characters like jealous husbands, wives and foppish dandies. We find its use in Restoration dramatists, particularly in the works of Wycherley and Congreve. Sentimental Comedy Sentimental drama contains both comedy and sentimental tragedy. It appears in literary circle due to reaction of middle class against obscenity and indecency of Restoration Comedy of Manners. This form gained popularity among the middle class audiences in eighteenth century. This drama incorporates scenes with extreme emotions evoking excessive pity. Tragicomedy This dramatic genre contains both tragic and comedic elements. It blends both elements to lighten an overall mood of the play. Often, tragicomedy is a serious play ends happily. Comedy Examples from Literature Example 1 William Shakespeare’s play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, is a good example of a romantic comedy, presenting young lovers falling comically in and out of love for a brief period. Their real world problems get resolved magically, enemies reconcile and true lovers unite in the end. Example 2 In his play, Every Man in His Humor, Ben Johnson brings comedy of humors. An overpowering suspicion and obsessed with his wife that she might be unfaithful to him, controls Kitely. Then, a country gull determines every decision of George Downright in order to understand the manners of gallant city. Kno’well worried for moral development of his son, tries to spy on him. Example 3 Sir Richard Steele’s play, The Conscious Lovers, is a best-known and popular sentimental comedy, which is like amelodrama. It characterizes extremeexaggeration, dealing with trials of its penniless leading role Indiana. The play ends happily with the discovery of Indiana as heiress. Example 4 Shakespeare’s play, All’s Well that Ends Well, perfectly sums up tragic and comic elements. This tragicomedy play shows antics of low born but devoted Helena, who attempts to win the love of her lover, Bertram. She finally succeeds into marrying him though she decides not to accept him until wears family ring of her husband and bears him a child. She employs a great deal of trickery by disguising herself as Bertram’s another he is after and fakes her death. Bertram discovers her treachery at the end but realizes Helena did all that for him and expresses his love for her. Function of Comedy Comedy tends to bring humor and induce laughter in plays, films and theaters. The primary function of comedy is to amuse and entertain the audience, while it also portrays social institutions and persons as corrupt and ridicules them through satirizing, parodying and poking fun at their vices. By doing this, the authors expose foibles and follies of individuals and society by using comic elements