What is the difference between high comedy and low comedy?

Theatrical Genres

Resources

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Wilson and Goldfarb. Theatre: The Lively Art, 7th edition: Chapter 5.

What is genre ?

Genre is a French word meaning "category" or "type." The choice of genre reflect's the writer's point of view towards his subject. The two oldest genres, dating back to the fifth century BCE, are tragedy and comedy.

Using the classical definition, what is the difference between a tragedy and a comedy?

Mask of Comedy and Tragedy

In a tragedy, the protagonist goes down in defeat (hence the frown), in a comedy he overcomes the dramatic obstacle and attains his major objective (which is why he's smiling).

What is the difference between the protagonist and the antagonist?

The protagonist is the principal character (the "hero") in a play; the antagonist is his primary opponent (the "villain"): the dramatic obstacle.

What is the major objective?

Themajor objective, also known as the spine, is the major character's primary desire or goal. If the character reaches that goal, the play (by definition) is a comedy. If he doesn't, it's a tragedy.

In a Shakespearean tragedy, the hero dies; in a Shakespearean comedy he gets married. The greater the body count at the final curtain, the greater the tragedy. The more weddings in the last act, the greater the comedy. (I was taught this, kind of "tongue in cheek," by Professor T. W. Baldwin in a Shakespeare class in college.)

What is the popular definition of a drama?

A serious, but not tragic, play dealing with middle, or lower class characters. A bourgeois drama.

A comedy?

A light amusing play with a happy ending. Often a farce.

What is the difference between high comedy and low comedy?

Arms and the Man

The subject of high comedy is usually serious and provokes "thoughtful laughter". The action is both possible and probable and the comedy grows out of the character, not the situation. It is usually a realistic portrayal of life. Arms and the Man (1894) by George Bernard Shaw, the story of a Swiss army officer who has replaced his cartridges with chocolate, is generally considered a high comedy(a Comedy of Ideas). The play was adapted into a German operetta by Oscar Straus: The Chocolate Soldier (1908). The objective of low comedy is "riotous laughter." The action is possible, but not very probable and the play is dominated by situation (plot), not character. It calls for little or no thought, and is only believable for the moment.

Date: 2016-03-03; view: 2815