On my
quest to discover what comedy is, I referred back to my notes from the first
day. I defined comedy as “something that creates laughter and a sense of
light-heartedness.” I created this with a puffed up chest so full of pride. But
sadly, I had just scraped the surface of what comedy really is. I also found a
list of word associations for comedy and it said things like “sarcasm, dry
humor, practical jokes, puns, etc. ” Once again, an inaccurate representation
of what comedy is.
Mr. Frye was kind enough to nail down a very in depth
definition of comedy and it has helped me analyze the works we’ve read thus
far. First of all, comedy isn’t necessarily what we would term as “funny.” It
is not guaranteed to make you double over in laughter. Rather, it points out the amusing flaws in human nature. Frye
provides a great definition that pretty much explains the whole class: “comedy
is designed not to condemn evil, but to ridicule a lack of self-knowledge.”
Once you know this, it is much easier to grasp what the entire purpose of
comedy is. It will show you various flaws represented by the characters, but it
a light manner. It allows you to take a second look at some flaws you might
possess without getting a chip on your shoulder. One might argue that comedy is
an extremely powerful tool for playwrights to convey their thoughts and ideas.
