Essay on Five Comedies
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- Category: Arts
- Date Submitted: 05/02/2011 09:38 AM
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1. On the concepts of inversion, repetition and reciprocal interference applied to The School for Wives, Feydeau’s My Wife’s Dead Mother, Private Lives, Beyond Therapy, and Sure Thing
Bergson explores laughter and how comedy can achieve this pure human expression of vulnerability. Thru his essay entitle Le Rire (On Laughter) he establishes methods, strategies or tools used since comedy was named. Some of these elements are describe in Chapter Two of the essay and can be summoned in three mayor characteristics: repetition, inversion and reciprocal interference of series.
Repetition is defined as “a combination of circumstances, which recurs several times in its original form and thus contrasts with the changing stream of life” (119, Bergson, 1899). In other words, repetition is an element based in the use of a situation, movement or words repeatedly. This gimmick is very popular in classic and modern comedy. An example for classic comedy is Feydeau’s My Wife’s Dead Mother. In this argument, Feydeau writes many times about Lucien’s upset stomach and him eating out. The comic element is Yvonne for she takes advantage of each possible moment to let him know how upsetting him eating out. The debate, or, for farces sake, fight becomes repetitive and its use evolves from tragic or sad to completely funny. The situation is taken outside of the couple’s core and Annette is involved by Yvonne.
Annette: Anyding furder vhile I’m up und in here?
Yvonne: (Arranging her covers.) Ask him, Annette—ask monsieur. He’s the sick
sufferer.
Lucien: (Sounding exhausted.) I have a queasy stomach.
Annette: Vell den, if m’sieu didn’t run around und act de fool.
Having Lucien in the middle of an inquisition can become hysterically funny just with the use of the repetition of fights.
A modern comedy that also uses this comic element thru the same means is Private Lives. Noel Cöward has exchangeable couples arguing throughout the play. He inserts...
Bergson explores laughter and how comedy can achieve this pure human expression of vulnerability. Thru his essay entitle Le Rire (On Laughter) he establishes methods, strategies or tools used since comedy was named. Some of these elements are describe in Chapter Two of the essay and can be summoned in three mayor characteristics: repetition, inversion and reciprocal interference of series.
Repetition is defined as “a combination of circumstances, which recurs several times in its original form and thus contrasts with the changing stream of life” (119, Bergson, 1899). In other words, repetition is an element based in the use of a situation, movement or words repeatedly. This gimmick is very popular in classic and modern comedy. An example for classic comedy is Feydeau’s My Wife’s Dead Mother. In this argument, Feydeau writes many times about Lucien’s upset stomach and him eating out. The comic element is Yvonne for she takes advantage of each possible moment to let him know how upsetting him eating out. The debate, or, for farces sake, fight becomes repetitive and its use evolves from tragic or sad to completely funny. The situation is taken outside of the couple’s core and Annette is involved by Yvonne.
Annette: Anyding furder vhile I’m up und in here?
Yvonne: (Arranging her covers.) Ask him, Annette—ask monsieur. He’s the sick
sufferer.
Lucien: (Sounding exhausted.) I have a queasy stomach.
Annette: Vell den, if m’sieu didn’t run around und act de fool.
Having Lucien in the middle of an inquisition can become hysterically funny just with the use of the repetition of fights.
A modern comedy that also uses this comic element thru the same means is Private Lives. Noel Cöward has exchangeable couples arguing throughout the play. He inserts...