INTRODUCTION TO COMEDY

Byron (poet)

All tragedies are finish’d by a death, all comedies are ended by a marriage.

1788-1824

Charlie Chaplin (comedian)

Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up but a comedy in

long-shot.

1889-1977

Eric Idle (comedian and Actor)

Life doesn’t make any sense and we all pretend it does. Comedy’s job is to point out that it doesn’t make sense, and that it doesn’t make much difference anyway.

Born 1943

Peter Ustinov (Actor)

Comedy is simply a funny way of being serious.

1921-2004

Moliere (Playwright/Actor)

The duty of comedy is to correct men by amusing them.

1622-1673

Bombeck (Humourist/comedian)

There is a thin line that separates laughter from pain, comedy and tragedy, humour and

hurt.

1927-1956

Phillip Sidney (poet)

Comedy is an imitation of the common errors of our life.

1554-1586

Comedy is:

1. Something that makes you laugh.

2. A separate dramatic genre.

Comedy Through Time

Comedy, is argued, to have originated from Ancient Greece.

The Greeks celebrated the feast of Dionysus. Actors would dress up and parade, pretending to be drunk thus creating slapstick comedy.

Put your timelines in order. Can you identify modern day examples that match the descriptions?

Timeline

1. Earliest Origins: A key element is slapstick comedy. Laurel and Hardy or Just for Laughs/You’ve been framed.

2. Satyr Plays: The satyrs interferes with the normal story for comic effect. Miranda/Mrs Brown’s boys.

3. Old Comedy: Political Satire which made fun of the politicians. The politicians could be identified. Have I got news for you?

4. Middle Comedy: Continued with satire. It became less obvious who the characters were imitating from real life.

5. New Comedy: Conflict between generations e.g. My Family and Harry Enfield.

Timeline

6. Roman Comedy: Use of stock characters e.g. The Big Bang Theory.

7. Shakespearean Comedy: develops key elements such as disguise, conflict, resolution and reconciliation e.g. Some Mothers do Have ‘em and Ten things I hate about you.

8. Jonsonian Comedy: showed the interaction of people of different classes and were often critical of politics e.g. Two Broke Girls.

9. Restoration Comedy: cross-dressing and bawdy comedy e.g. Catherine Tate.

11.Eighteenth-century Comedy: comedy of manners, pokes fun at recognisable characters but not very political.

12.Nineteenth-century comedy: The comedy of manners continues to be developed but becomes mainly focused on the upper classes e.g. Keeping Up Appearances.

13.Twentieth-century comedy: Influenced by the rise of films. Social comedy and satires are developed e.g. Have I got news for you? ‘Come fly with me’. Benidorm.

Timeline