The Humor of Little Britain
The creators are Matt Lucas and David Walliams, who play most of the
characters. Matt Lucas is better known as George Dawes from Shooting
Stars (the bald, fat baby!). He began his career doing stand-up at
eighteen as the character Sir Bernard Chumley, who also appears in
Little Britain (the creepy old man with the disabled sister!). He's
certainly had lots of experience, and has written for Da Ali G Show,
as well as The Guardian newspaper and Attitude (a gay magazine).
David Walliams has had less success, but has recently won an award at
The British Comedy Awards, receiving the gong of Best Newcomer. Rock
Profile, Eastenders (as Alfie's fake registrar), Casualty and even
Randall and Hopkirk Deceased all feature on his CV. He's very dishy
(http://www.davidwalliams.com/full/jakebw.jpg), not that you would
ever notice under the wig he wears for the role of Lou, or the fake
breasts needed for when he plays Anne!
If you're the kind of person who loves My Hero and My Family, I don't
think this is for you. It isn't what you'd call politically correct,
and I'm sure a few people will be offended, but you'd have to be
extremely sensitive to find it insulting. The BBC have in fact
received a few complaints over the sketch where Jason, a strange
teenager, who has a crush on his friend's gran, seizes the opportunity
and sucks her toes while giving her a foot massage. I found that
particular scene embarrassingly funny, but there you go - it won't
appeal to everyone!
The humour is a bit skewed to say the least, and quite difficult to
describe. The jokes are both verbal and visual, and most of the
sketches don't even need any sort of punchline because it's the
characters that are funny! It has been compared to The League Of
Gentleman and The Fast Show but I can't say I've watched either of
those shows, so I can't comment! It is hilarious though - witty,
original and very, very funny.
Australian humour is very unique to Australia, and many other cultures find it quite unusual. It can be described as dry, anti-authoritarian, self-mocking, very ironic and as to stretch the boundaries of what is acceptable. Our humour is seen through our use of slang, print cartoons, radio sketches, comedy series’ on television, films, everyday life and in Australian literature. According to the Collins Dictionary and Thesaurus , humour means, “The quality of being funny; the ability to appreciate or express that which is humorous; situations, speech or writings that are humorous”. Due to its unique qualities, it will become apparent that Australian humour is quiet different to that of America and England and other nations. To highlight the importance of humour through the development of Australian identity, five main elements have been identified. These are, the part Australian humour plays in Australian identity, its unique qualities, its integral part in the Australian identity, the role of humour in times of great hardship and other nation’s perceptions of Australian humour. It is through these elements that it will become evident that humour is an important part of the development of the Australian identity.
Barbara Ehrenreich employed the use of humor multiple times in Nickel and Dimed; it was perhaps her most frequently used rhetorical device. Ehrenreich was trying to portray the tragedy and heartbreak of the situation by using that sort of hopeless, sardonic humor. She also used her humor as a way to camouflage topics that would otherwise be off-limits. Although some of the humor included in the narrative may have seemed distasteful, it all had a purpose and was rarely used inappropriately.
What is the most common perception held in this country concerning the people and the way they live in the South? The perception most of the country has about life down here in the South is one of slow-paced living, simple-minded people, and stubborn, unwarranted pride. One of the best ways to combat this perception is through the use of humor; Lewis Grizzard was one of the best at this, because he could take the experiences from his own life as well as the lives of others in the South and turn them into humorous semi-fictional stories. He was one of the preeminent fictional authors this country has ever seen because of his ability to connect with people and joke about everyday life in the south, without offending the subjects of those jokes, despite the popular opinion the rest of the country held.
"No one is born a racist bigot. In other words, racial bigotry or racial prejudice is not genetically or
“Monty Python and the Holy Grail” is a satiric comedy about the quest of King Arthur. The movie starts out with Arthur, King of the Britons, looking for knights to sit with him at Camelot. He finds many knights including Sir Galahad the pure, Sir Lancelot the brave, the quiet Sir Bedevere, and Sir Robin the Not-Quite-So-Brave-as-Sir Lancelot. Through satire and parody of certain events in history (witch trials, the black plague) they find Camelot, but after literally a quick song and dance they decide that they do not want to go there. While walking away, God (who seems to be grumpy) come to them from a cloud and tells them to find the Holy Grail. They agree and begin their search. While they search for the Grail, scenes of the knight's tales appear and the reasons behind their names. Throughout their search, they meet interesting people and knights along the way. Most of the characters die; some through a killer rabbit (which they defeat with the holy hand grenade), others from not answering a question right from the bridge of Death, or die some other ridiculous way. In the end, King Arthur and Sir Bedevere are left and find the Castle Arrrghhh where the Holy Grail is. They are met by some French soldiers who taunted them earlier in the film and were not able to get into the castle. The movie ends with both King Arthur and Sir Bedevere being arrested for killing a real-life man who was a historian.
Watched by grandparents, known by parents, but quickly fleeting in the minds of young ones, Charlie Chaplin is the original “tramp.” From films such as The Kid or The Circus, Chaplin is the face of silent films. His unique combination of comedy and tragedy is a modern reformation of Shakespeare’s style. Many would agree that Charlie Chaplin is the Shakespeare of silent films. From rags to riches to exile, Chaplin is a timeless comedian and will always be remembered as the “tramp.”
“The Canterbury Tales” was written in the 14th century by Geoffrey Chaucer. These tales constitutes a frame story which each pilgrim has to tell their own story to the Chaucer, the pilgrim; not the poet. As we know, the tale itself is a satire, but the stylistic structure in the tales creates a sense that can be a parody as well. To support this idea of parody, it is need to know the definition of parody and how Chaucer use this style to make his own ideas clear through the general prologue and the tales such as “The Miller’s Tale” and “The Knight’s Tale”.
Examine fully the writers use of humour in The Opposite Sex by Laurie Lee This essay aims to examine the use of humour in Laurie Lee's short story 'The Opposite Sex'. It tells the story of a teenage boy who is led to his first sexual experience. As much of Laurie Lee's writing was autobiographical or loosely based upon his own life we may assume that this is the tale of Lee's first sexual encounter, yet there is no definite proof to support this argument. Lee was born in 1914 and raised in his birth-town of Slad, Gloucestershire where he later went on to set many of his novels, including 'The Opposite Sex'. His other works were set in countries in which he had spent a lot of time whilst travelling as a young man during and after the Second World War.
The word "hero" is so often used to describe people who overcome great difficulties and rise to the challenge that is set before them without even considering the overwhelming odds they are up against. In our culture, heroes are glorified in literature and in the media in various shapes and forms. However, I believe that many of the greatest heroes in our society never receive the credit that they deserve, much less fame or publicity. I believe that a hero is simply someone who stands up for what he/she believes in. A person does not have to rush into a burning building and save someone's life to be a hero. Someone who is a true friend can be a hero. A hero is someone who makes a difference in the lives of others simply by his/her presence. In Tim O'Brien's novel, The Things They Carried, the true heroes stand out in my mind as those who were true friends and fought for what they believed in. These men and women faced the atrocities of war on a daily basis, as explained by critic David R. Jarraway's essay, "'Excremental Assault' in Tim O'Brien: Trauma and Recovery in Vietnam War Literature" and by Vietnam Veteran Jim Carter. Yet these characters became heroes not by going to drastic measures to do something that would draw attention to themselves, but by being true to their own beliefs and by making a difference to the people around them.
Mad Magazine, The Simpsons, Saturday Night Live. In our society, satire is among the most prevalent of comedic forms. This was not always true, for before the 18th century, satire was not a fully developed form. Satire, however, rose out of necessity; writers and artists needed a way to ambiguously criticize their governments, their churches, and their aristocrats. By the 18th century, satire was hugely popular. Satire as an art form has its roots in the classics, especially in the Roman Horace's Satires. Satire as it was originally proposed was a form of literature using sarcasm, irony, and wit, to bring about a change in society, but in the eighteenth century Voltaire, Jonathan Swift and William Hogarth expanded satire to include politics, as well as art. The political climate of the time was one of tension. Any criticism of government would bring harsh punishments, sometimes exile or death. In order to voice opinions without fear of punishment, malcontented writers turned to Satire. Voltaire's Candide and Swift's Modest Proposal are two examples of this new genre. By creating a fictional world modeled after the world he hated, Voltaire was able to attack scientists, and theologians with impunity. Jonathan Swift created many fictional worlds in his great work, Gulliver's Travels, where he constantly drew parallels to the English government.
Frequently in literature, humor is added in scenes to make them more interesting and more appealing to readers. Often times underneath the humorous covers lay a much more serious principle. Charles Dickens does exactly this in A Tale of Two Cities, by making slight comedy of issues such as democracy, the lower class, and spousal abuse.
Humor, along with its various forms, including satire, is often used to present social commentaries. This is especially true in Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In his novel, Twain tells the story of a boy named Huckleberry Finn voyaging down the Mississippi River to free his slave companion, Jim. In doing so, Twain evokes many issues of Southern culture. Through the use of satirical devices, characterization, and story, the author enlightens readers and offers a critique on racism and religion. One of the best, if not the single most important, humorist in American history, Mark Twain, through his satire, paints a portrait of the pre-Civil War American South and all its flaws.
My presentation is based an article titled The Inhibited and the Uninhibited: Ironic Structure in the Miller’s Tale it s written by Earle Birney. The literary theme that Birney is discussing in his essay is structural irony. Structural irony is basically a series of ironic events and instances that finally build up to create a climax. The events and the climax the Birney chooses to focus his essay on are the events that lead towards the end when almost each character suffers an ironic event:
In The Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare creates humour through his characters by creating false realities (as demonstrated by Petruchio’s behaviour and attire in the scene of his wedding) and by the use of subterfuge and mistaken identity (shown in the final scenes with the transformation of Kate and Bianca’s respective personas). He also uses irony quite extensively, especially towards the end of the play (as can be seen in the final ‘wager’ scene).
The Lone Ranger, Zorro, Batman, Superman are some of the characters that we stereotypically constitute as heroes. They are known to fight with courage without fear of death. They destroy the enemy within a blink of an eye. They fight using their own body strength, superpower, or some kind of weapon. They come to the rescue miraculously and leave without a trace. They are mysterious. We are unable to identify who they are underneath the masks and disguises. Yet, we praise them and ignore the real heroes that surround us regularly, ordinarily. “All of us …like to believe that in a moral emergency we will behave like the heroes of our youth, bravely and forthrightly, without thought of personal loss or discredit” (O’Brien 39). In other words, we are quite oblivious to the ordinary people of the world that are, in fact, the true heroes.