Comedy Analysis: Humour in literature and poetry

Roald Dahl

Humour has been around as long as mankind itself. Due to the lack of television, radio and the Internet during most of history, comedians and humorists have had to find other ways to broadcast their witty banter and hilarious ingenuity. Literature and poetry have proven a fertile ground for humour and has been used extensively throughout history for comedic purposes.

Elsewhere on this blog William Shakespeare has been mentioned and he is likely to come up again in the future, so we will not go too deep into his work here. We will mention however that he wrote many pieces of hilarious work which closely resemble contemporary humour. These include sitcoms (Merry Wives of Windsor), yo mama-jokes (such as in Hamlet) and slapstick (in nearly all his comedies and in a lot of his other work as well). He is worth a read and by no means deserves the bad reputation he has among many schoolchildren.

Besides old Will, there are many more respected authors who took to poetry to vent their funny antics. An example is Lewis Carrol, who wrote a poem about his love for soup (Beautiful Soup) and even the early twentieth century writer T.S. Eliot wrote a poem about Macavity, the feline master criminal (Macavity – The mystery cat).

Roald Dahl, known for several brilliant books also wrote a hilarious poem: The Pig. The main character is Piggy, a big and smart pig, who is able to read books and make calculations without the aid of a scrap paper or calculator. He is frustrated because he doesn't know the answer to one question:

“What LIFE was really all about.

What was the reason for his birth?

Why was he placed upon this earth?

His giant brain went round and round.

Alas, no answer could be found.”

I won't spoil the ending, so go read this hilarious poem! The link is below this post.

Charles Dickens

Literature is also full of humour outside of poetry. A classic example is Charles Dickens' Hard Times – For These Times which is full of satire. When we go into very classic literature we end up with the Odyssey. Although this is an epic drama, there is definite humour in there. A prime example is the moment where Odysseus blinds Polyphemus (the cyclops) and Polyphemus screams. When his brothers ask him who hurt him, Polyphemus responds “nobody hurt me” because Odysseus told him his name was nobody. Although this was probably written in the 8th century BCE, this is often considered an early form of humour.

Poetry and literature are full of humour and it really is a shame most teachers don't use humour more frequently in their literature classes. As with everything, literature is more fun when humour gets involved. Happy reading!

Links for further reading:

http://100.best-poems.net/macavity-mystery-cat.html

http://100.best-poems.net/beautiful-soup.html

http://100.best-poems.net/pig.html

Comedy Analysis: Humour in Ancient Greece

A person went to a doctor and said “Doctor, whenever I get up from sleeping, I'm groggy for a half an hour afterwards and only after that am I all right” To which the doctor replied: “Get up half an hour later.” - Philogelos (The Laughter Lover)

Philip of Macedon

This is one of the jokes that survived the ages. It was a joke told by the ancient Greeks and is remarkably similar to the jokes we would tell today. In fact, a major part of Greek humour, often over 2000 years old is very similar to our own comedy and humour today. The Greeks invented the parody, the comic drama, they ridiculed their politicians, made fun of their gods and wrote manuscripts and books containing jokes, which were even bought by king Philip of Macedon, who was Alexander the Great's 17th great-grandfather.

Besides the written joke-books, comedy was often portrayed through plays. This is possibly the best-known form of Greek comedy. This form of Ancient Greek humour is generally divided in 3 categories: Old, Middle and New humour. Although these terms are not necessarily chronological and most scholars agree old humour was common and evolving all throughout ancient Greece, they do roughly correspond with the order of ‘invention’ of types of humour.

Old humour encompassed sharp political satire and an abundance of innuendo. The innuendo was not only sexual, but also often scatological in nature. Also political attacks were sometimes disguised as humour. Not much material has survived the passing of time, but there are still enough works left to get an image of what Old humour would have been like. Some of the most famous writers of Old humour include Aristophanes, Hermippus and Eupolis.

Middle humour is the least clearly defined chronologically, scholars differ in opinion on when exactly it started, but the general consensus is it was later than Aristophanes, but before Menande. Middle humour is different from Old humour in the sense that the ridicule started to become more general, as opposed to the more direct ridicule in Old humour. Also there was little to no impersonation of public figures and recurring characters became more developed. Plays based on Middle humour were performed as far as Sicily, indicating they had significant influence on literature and culture in the ancient world.

Plautus

New humour was mainly popular during the Macedonian rule, mainly after the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC. New humour lasted till approximately 260 BC. In this era the humour became highly sophisticated and the sexual innuendo from Old humour became frowned upon. Love became an important subject in comedy and there came a greater focus on the ordinary person’s life. Most comedians started painting an image of family life which was as ordinary and realistic as possible, but with a humorous twist. This is similar to the Roman comedy of the same era. Also love became a real theme for the first time in comedy and this inspired artists for centuries to come. Shakespeare for instance was inspired by Plautus’ work.

Greek humour is surprisingly similar to today's humour as is known around the world. Even the joke about the 3 nationalities (Englishman, Irishman and Scotsman and all the variations to this) was common in Greece. Also the 'smart servant' jokes which were used by Shakespeare and by many comedians throughout history were already in use among the Greeks. It's interesting to see how many similarities there are in humour even through 2000 years of history. This also gives hope that humour can indeed promote understanding between peoples and cultures. If 2000 years of history and development can be bridged by humour, then certainly a few miles between two countries can be overcome. 

Comedy Analysis: Facial humour

The man with the rubber face

The face is one of the most powerful instruments in the world of comedy and humour. By using specific expressions, or by not using them, comic effect can be achieved. Some comedians have made the face their speciality or trademark. Rowan Atkinson is even nicknamed "the man with the rubber face", due to his ability to use differing facial expressions and deadpan in his humour.

A well-known version of facial humour is deadpan. This is derived from the slang meaning of 'pan' which is face. Therefore deadpan is a 'dead' face i.e. a face without expression. This is used for comedic purpose when delivering a statement or punchline. Leslie Nielsen was an expert in deadpan. His use of deadpan in the film Airplane! is legendary.

Leslie Nielsen's Deadpan

The opposite of deadpan is exaggeration. Here the comedian makes an exaggerated expression for comic effect. This can for instance be a grimace of incredible pain, when the comedian was only slightly nudged or a face of incredible joy over something small. Rowan Atkinson frequently used exaggeration in his Mr. Bean character.

Another form of facial humour is to make an expression which does not suit the actual emotion in the least. For instance a happy face at a funeral, though (or maybe because) it is inappropriate, can be funny. (In comedies ONLY, do NOT attempt this at a real funeral!).

The final form of facial humour we will discuss here is the act of making a weird or funny face, unrelated to the surroundings. This is a technique used by many comedians, as well as by 'normal' people. This can be hilarious when done right and can often be seen in photo-bombs, at parties, stand-up comedy acts and in many films, series and on the streets.

Due to the many possibilities of the face (most probably haven't even been mentioned here) it is a truly powerful tool of comedy. You can try it at home, take a ridiculous picture, upload it to the Internet and see the responses flood in!

Comedy Analysis: British sitcoms

Man about the House

British sitcoms on TV have been around since even before American sitcoms: Pinwright's Progress, was aired from November 1946 till May 1947. This makes it nearly a year older than the first American televised sitcom. Although there are many similarities between American and British sitcoms in that they both focus on a family, workplace or other institution and have largely the same character types, there are distinct differences as well.

The first major difference is the amount of episodes per series. Generally British sitcoms air less than 10 episodes per series or season, whereas in America it is usual for seasons to consist of around 20 episodes. Also many British sitcoms are produced for the BBC, which has no commercial breaks during broadcasts and limited commercials in between programmes. This allows for a full 30 minute run time for sitcoms, whereas American sitcoms generally run for 22 minutes, to accommodate 8 minutes of commercials.

Another key difference is the number of writers. US-made sitcoms are often written by a team of a dozen resident writers, sometimes even more, whereas British sitcoms are generally written by 2 or 3 writers, who are often also the creators and (executive) producers of the show. This results in a different type of show with often a more consistent storyline.

Peter Capaldi in The Thick of It - a modern British sitcom

British comedies often follow a topical storyline which incorporates cultural developments and recent real-world events. Often the sitcom comments on these happenings. A well-known 1970s sitcom is Man about the House, which shows, and comments on, the changing role of women in society. During the 1980s the young generation started revolting and demanding a more equal role in society. This was portrayed by sitcoms, which started the 'alternative comedy' genre. The best example of this is possibly The Young Ones which follows a group of 4 students who share a home and each take the place of the classic sitcom characters: Neil is the mother, Vyvyan and Rick are the teenage children and Mike is the distant father.

With many British sitcoms gaining huge popularity abroad and some being remade for American TV, they are among the most successful types of comedy around. And much like American sitcoms they are here to stay.

"Why isn't my life like a situation comedy? Why don't I have a bunch of friends with nothing better to do but drop by and instigate wacky adventures? Why aren't my conversations peppered with spontaneous witticisms? Why don't my friends demonstrate heartfelt concern for my well being when I have problems? ...I gotta get my life some writers." -  Bill Waterson (Author Calvin and Hobbes)

Comedy Analysis: Character comedy and stereotypes

Ali G.

Character comedy is a form of comedy where the comedian takes on the role of a character, much like an actor, but with a funny effect. Stereotypes are often exaggerated depictions of certain peoples,

cultures, religions or other groups. The two forms of comedy often coincide, when the comedian takes on the role of a stereotypical character.

A form of stereotypical comedy which is especially popular in the UK and Europe is the depiction of (former) soldiers or military officers. Also the depiction of stereotypical law-enforcement officers is popular. Often the depiction of police officers includes some reference to dictatorships, fascism or national-socialism. Also both the police and military are often shown to be of questionable intelligence.

Another famous example of a stereotype is Sacha Baron Cohen's portrayal of Ali G. He is a stereotype of the typical (British) white (generally working class) male who imitates the rap culture as well as the reggae and hip-hop cultures. He pretends to be much more streetwise and 'gangster' than he really is and hangs out with people much like himself. Characters like these are a sure source of hilarity.

Michelle Dubois in 'Allo, 'Allo!

In British comedy stereotypes are highly popular. Not only foreign or other specific groups are targeted, the Britons are remarkably fond of stereotypical British characters. Some examples include Basil Fawlty and most of the British characters in 'Allo 'Allo! who are generally portrayed as over-the-top British with exaggerated accents. In the same series however, there are also stereotypical French, German and Nazi characters.

American comedy often uses stereotypes such as rednecks, Mexicans (and other Latinos) and people from specific cities, such as New Yorkers who are often depicted as New Jersey-hating, coffee and bagel-loving, Yups. Also the police is often stereotyped as incompetent, lazy, coffee-drinking and donut-eating. This is prominently displayed in series such as The Simpsons where Chief Wiggum is all that. American stereotypes are often regarded to be less complicated than British stereotypes although that is not always true. Stereotyping has been around for centuries and doesn't seem to be going anywhere soon, so we had better learn to appreciate them, even when we find ourselves on the receiving end.

Comedy Series Review: Arrested Development

Michael: “Tell me the truth. There's been a lot of lying in this family”

Lucille: “And a lot of love.”

Michael: “More lies.”

There's probably no better way to summarise the relationships within the Bluth family than the above quote. The Bluth family is the main family in the American classic Arrested Development. With the head of the family, George Bluth Sr indicted after years of “creative accounting” his son, Michael Bluth becomes the de facto head of the family and the Bluth corporation. Michael's authority is constantly being undermined by his incompetent and selfish older brother George Oscar 'Gob' Bluth. This leads to hilarious situations where Michael is desperately trying to do the good thing and keep the family together, while the rest is trying to fend for themselves.

Michael is a widowed single father, who has one son: George Michael Bluth. George Michael has many of the positive characteristics his father has, but is also less connected to the rest of the family. Throughout the development of the series, Michael's bad sides become more and more apparent and he is often seen ignoring his son's feelings and becoming more selfish and detached from the family.

Lucille Bluth, the family's mother

The series gets a lot of it's hilarity from the voice-over who tells the story in a dry manner and is often disillusioning whenever a positive development seems to come up. Also there are a lot of running jokes, such as George senior mentioning there is 'money in the banana stand'. After the banana stand is burned to the ground, he reveals he meant this literally: there was $250.000 cash lined in the stand's walls.  After finding out Michael burned the stand down, George Sr. becomes infuriated, trying to strangle Michael and demanding to know how he could be clearer when saying “There's always money in the banana stand”. Another running joke is a family member stating “I've made a huge mistake” whenever they get themselves in over their heads.

The story features a lot of 'archive footage' and 'home videos' which were often made with a handheld camera to create a feel of amateur videos. These are often used in flashbacks to the family's past, often before the series started. This sheds some light on the character's background and the family history.

The Bluth family, left to right:
GOB, George Sr. Lindsay, Tobias, Michael, Lucille, George Michael, Maybe, Buster

Because most of the family's assets were seized pending the investigation into George Sr.'s accounting, they are forced to live in a model home, which was intended for viewing and as such doesn't have real plumbing or a sewer connection. Also most of the furniture and appliances are cardboard models for show only and don't really work. This doesn't exactly contribute to the family's bonding. Also most of their cars have been seized, leaving them with only a stair car, which was originally used for boarding the private plane. The plane had also been sold to help deal with the financial trouble. This odd mode of transport contributed to many hilarious scenes as it was used to break people out of prison, take down homecoming banners and for promotional purposes during election campaigns.

The dysfunctionality of the Bluth family and their complex internal relationships with secrets everywhere make for a hilarious sitcom. With 68 episodes already aired, a 9.2/10 rating on IMDB and the creator hinting on a film and fifth series to come, this series is here to stay. And so it should.

Comedy Analysis: American sitcoms

The cast of Married... with Children

A staple of contemporary comedy, American sitcoms are gaining numbers and popularity around the world. The American sitcom has been around since 1926, when Sam 'n' Henry was first broadcast on WGN radio in Chicago. The first televised sitcom was Mary Kay and Johnny which premiered on 18 November 1947, on DuMont Television Network. Later is was moved to CBS and later to NBC. It was also the first show to show a couple in bed and the first show to feature a pregnancy. This was because Mary Kay became pregnant and as the attempts at cover-up were unsuccessful, the writers decided to write it into the show. The show was also broadcast live at first, but was later recorded and aired after production. As the show's sponsor wanted to know if it was worth investing money into, but there were no viewing statistics yet, they devised a simple way to test the waters: during one of the commercial breaks a spot was aired offering a free pocket mirror to the first 200 viewers who wrote in. As a precaution the company bought 400 mirrors, in case the audience was larger than expected. After airing only the one spot, the company received nearly 9000 requests for mirrors. Therefore the sitcom was regarded to be a success in viewer figures.

Later sitcoms follow largely the same format focusing on a family and their daily antics. Some sitcoms follow a miserable family, or a miserable family member (Such as Married... with children), whereas other sitcoms follow more of a funny or comedic family (such as The Simpsons or Family Guy). Especially animated sitcoms often feature more absurd humour or over-the-top hilarious situations.

American sitcoms also often incorporate slapstick and sarcasm into the series. Not every sitcom these

The cast of Community

days focuses on a family, although the classic roles of family members are often filled in by other characters. For instance Community follows a study group on Greendale Community College. Increasingly the 'old-fashioned' one-camera sitcoms are returning. The one-camera technique involves a single camera filming the entire series, rather than 3 or more cameras filming with the best scenes then edited together. Some modern single-camera shows include Scrubs, It's always sunny in Philadelphia and Arrested Development. Also the mockumentary sitcom is on the rise. These include series such as The Office and Modern Family, which are made to look like a documentary, but with a comedic effect.

The American sitcom is still undeniably among the most popular forms of comedy around. Many are broadcast around the world and repeated often. Some of the most legendary gems of comedy are sitcoms, such as The Cosby Show, Seinfeld, The Simpsons and  I Love Lucy. This is a genre in comedy worth preserving.

Comedian Bio: Tommy Cooper

Tommy Cooper and signature fez

A prop comedian and magician whose act was so unpredictable that when he got a heart attack he died on stage, during a live television broadcast, people weren't sure if they should help him, or if it was part of the act. He wore a signature fez and was a large, imposing figure.

His act generally involved magic tricks which were either obviously fake, or didn't work, for comic effect. His response to failed tricks made it a hilarious show to watch. Every now and then he would throw in a trick that actually worked, just when the audience least expected it.

Tommy Cooper's Statue in Caerphilly

He managed to keep audiences entertained for four decades, and even posthumously he is still admired as a comedic genius and respected magician. He is often said to be one of the best comedians in history and in 2008 Sir Anthony Hopkins revealed a statue of Tommy Cooper, including fez, in Tommy's hometown Caerphilly, Wales, United Kingdom.

Tommy Cooper has left behind a legacy going far beyond best-of-lists and a statue. Numerous comedians and artists have cited him as an inspiration, including Jason Manford and John Lydon. Also several members of the English ska-band Madness have been seen wearing fezzes in Tommy Cooper's image.

Although Tommy Cooper has struggled with alcohol and smoking, leading to a decline in health and his act, he has managed to pull through. He has however never stopped drinking and it's thought his untimely death may in part have been brought along by alcohol abuse and smoking. As his collapse was aired live, there are countless recordings of it, which can easily be found online. Some websites including Youtube have been heavily criticized for featuring the video due to its dramatic content.

Even though Tommy has had his ups and downs, he is generally remembered as a comedic genius and has inspired many artists and comedians. He has earned his place in comedy history.

Comedy Series Review: The Young Ones

The Cast of the Young Ones;
Jerzei Balowski, Neil, Rick, Mike and Vyvyan

Over 30 years ago, in London, there was a successful club circuit for young stand-up comedians. The success of the scene prompted the BBC to approach a few of the most successful stand-up acts and make a series with them. This became The Young Ones.

The Young Ones follows the lives of Rick, Neil, Mike and Vyvyan, four lazy students living in a shared house in the early 80's. The massive differences between their personalities and their regular violent clashes made this series one of the big hits of the time. It's profound violence, blood, sex and foulness had never been seen before in any mainstream comedy series and certainly not in a flagship series at the BBC. Several attempts have been made by other series since to incorporate these matters into their shows, but never quite as successful as The Young Ones.

Rick is a wannabe leftie anarchist and Cliff Richard fan. Deep down he really is quite conservative and doesn't actually come from a worker's class background, but from an upper-class conservative family. He writes horrible poetry and refers to himself as “The People's Poet” and “the voice of a generation”. Vyvyan has described him as a “classic example of an only child” due to his entitled nature and tantrum-throwing.

Mike refers to himself as 'the cool guy'. It is unclear whether this is his actual surname, or just a title. He assumes the position of ladies' man and natural leader of the house. These positions are also challenged, as he is often shown to share his bed with a blow-up doll and in one episode he nearly admitted to being a virgin. His authority is mainly enforced by Vyvyan tolerating his authority and Rick's sucking up to him.

Vyvyan isn't entertained

Vyvyan is often described as a bastard. He is a punker with orange hair, and metal stars apparently embossed into his forehead. He sometimes portrays superhuman strength and abilities, such as his extremely high tolerance of alcohol, his ability to eat virtually everything, his teeth being able to bite trough bricks and his power to lift people above his head with apparently little effort. He is on occasion able to solve complicated calculations fast and without the aid of a calculator or even pen and paper, although he can't tell time from a watch.

Neil is the final member of the house. He is a clinically depressed hippie and stoner who has attempted suicide on at least 4 occasions in the show. He is generally abused by the rest of the house, and is forced to perform housework and cook for the rest. He believes sleeping causes cancer and as such tries not to sleep, although he is on occasion shown sleeping. He has several hippie friends including Warlock, Neil and a female friend called Stonehenge. This possibly makes him the house-mate with the most friends and definitely the only one with a female friend. 

The Young Ones aired 12 episodes over 2 seasons as well as several specials including a hit single with Cliff Richard's Living Doll to benefit Comic Relief. Despite its short lifespan it has won a BAFTA and has had several DVD releases around the world. An American pilot was also made for FOX but it wasn't picked up, much to the relief of Nigel Planer (Neil) as he was the only actor from the original cast to join and he was worried he'd have to spend 6 years with people he hated making sort of a grubby Benny Hill. The series remains popular and has inspired numerous other alternative comedy shows and sitcoms. 

Comedy Series Review: South Park

Eric Cartman, Stan Marsh, Kenny McCormick, Kyle Broflovski

South Park is Comedy Central's flagship show. Always rude, often gross, sometimes shocking and eternally on a quest to stretch the boundaries to the max, this show has attracted a huge fanbase over its  17 season lifespan (so far).

Matt Stone and Trey Parker are the masterminds behind this stop-motion animated comedy show. They first created an animated short entitled The Spirit of Christmas in 1992. This showed the four boys, largely as they would be depicted in the later series, although Kenny didn't have a name yet, and who is now Eric Cartman was called Kenny. A mutual friend and FOX producer then asked them to create a second animation for a Christmas card. This was created 1995 and already looked like the later series. The FOX producer sent the card to some of it's friends who uploaded it to the Internet, where it became one of the first viral videos ever.

After FOX refused to pick up the series the second short was shown to Doug Herzhog, executive with Comedy Central and he commissioned a series to be made. The first episode started the gross and shocking tradition straight away, entitled Cartman gets an anal probe and featuring Cartman getting

Muhammad, Prophet of Muslims and Lord of Fire

abducted by Aliens who install a giant satellite dish in his rectum. This episode later got a sequel with Cancelled, which has the exact same opening, after which the kids realize they've had that scene before.

Part of South Park's signature style is its animation. Although only the pilot episode was complete cut-out stop-motion, the rest of the series is animated by computer, keeping close to the stop-motion style of the pilot. This creates a unique and instantly recognizable style, which is now found on countless t-shirts, sweaters, bags, lunch boxes etcetera.

Due to it's kind of humour and complete disregard of conservative values and liberal causes and its portrayal of religion for comic effect, South Park has generated plenty of controversy and criticism from parent- and teacher-associations. The depiction of religious characters such as Muhammad has resulted in death threats and even the creator's home addresses were shared via the Internet. The depiction of Buddha snorting cocaine led Sri Lanka to completely ban the series.

Snookie from Jersey Shore makes an appearance on the show

The series follows a group of 4 primary school boys: Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny who go through all sorts unlikely and absurd adventures. These include trips to outer space, trips to Imagination-land, a battle against Wal-Mart, a bunch of Mongolians invading the Chinese restaurant City Wok and a war raging over 2 Canadian comedians which involves Satan and Saddam Hussein.

The absurd, gross, disgusting humour and sharp criticism of politics, religion and society as a whole, with a complete disregard for people's feelings and with no limits as to who gets insulted makes this series an absolute gem of contemporary American comedy. It has aired over 200 episodes and it's nowhere near over.