A style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity which exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy. Aggressive Humor inspired by early comedy theories from people like Plato (360 B.C.) to more increased hostile joke theories like Bryant (1977) and Zillman, Bryant and Cantos (1974). Slapstick emphasizes on the idea that most (if not all) of comedy is based on some form of misery whether physical or emotional. The idea that pain is just a part of life makes it instantly relatable towards the average audience member.
Tom & Jerry Episode 34 (1948) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctD7_vGvs-o
Slapstick and silent humor is the primary focus of Tom & Jerry’s comedy. Throughout the clip, there are over the top violence and expressions.
In the movie, the three main types of comedy I recognized were farce, parody, and satire. Farce is comedy designed to provoke the audience into simple, hearty laughter and often uses highly exaggerated or caricatured character types and puts them into improbable and ludicrous situations. It also makes use of broad verbal humor and physical horseplay. Some examples of farce in the movie are:
This scene, of escalating argument, presents a different type of humor. While the first was a slapstick, exaggerated and dark humor, the argument is more sarcastic, intelligent and cutting.
Steve Almond’s “Funny is the New Deep” talks of the role that comedy has in our current society, and most certainly, it plays a huge role here. Namely, through what Almond [Aristotle?] calls the “comic impulse”, we as a people can speak of topics that would otherwise make many of uncomfortable. Almond deems the comic impulse as the most surefire way to keep heavy situations from becoming too foreboding. The comic impulse itself stems from our ability and unconscious need to defend and thus contend with the feeling of tragedy. As such, instead of rather forcing out humor, he implies that humor is something that is not consciously forced out from an author, but instead is more of a subconscious entity, coming out on its own. Almond emphasizes
Humor: Tactic that plays on social group bias. When we laugh at something, we join with people who are of like minds to laugh at the other—the distorted, the unusual, or the exaggerated.
"Where have I been?" Dave Chappelle asked a San Francisco crowd in 2005. "It is a long story. It is a long, uninteresting story ..." Perhaps it is. And perhaps it isn’t. One thing is for certain. Today, Chappelle is considered by many to be one of the most influential comedians. He is particularly well known for his lively, controversial, and sometimes bordering on the obscene stand-up comic acts. In 2006, he was labeled “the comic genius of America” by Esquire. More recently, Billboard (2013) proclaimed him “the best.” Amazingly, it has been more than ten years since his comedy series, “The Chappelle Show” first aired. What’s even more amazing is the fact that his main body of work comes from only the first two seasons.
• Incongruity Theory posits that comedy is derived from the perception of something incongruous violating our mental patterns and expectations. Sunny Prestatyn initially constructs an idyllic image of femininity only to undermine it through coarse sexual innuendo, offensive language, and violent imagery to comedic effect.
According to Aristotle, “Comedy can be any colloquy or performance generally intended to amuse or stimulate laughter”. In modern times, comedy can be found in different forms, such as television, movies, theatres and stand-up comedy.
Television’s rise in popularity throughout the fifties saw the emergence of the situation comedy, a style that captivated audiences by presenting a story with a beginning, a middle, and a happy end. One of the most popular of these shows, I Love Lucy, continues to appeal to both young and old some forty years later -- and counting. For most people, the answer to how I Love Lucy continually and effectively draws viewers to the screen is that "It’s funny." There is more to this funny show than meets the eye.
The Addams Family was an unusual sitcom about an outlandish family of hellish outcasts homed in the center of suburban life. The 1964 television show was originally based off of a comic strip by a cartoonist, Charles Addams. It was a surreal show that was based one running joke. The Addams Family was “mysterious and kooky” and did not fit into comptempary life of modern suburban culture.
Tom becomes the role of the clown causing further distance from emotional relationships. Sally (his wife) in a moment of desperation states “I'm trying to calculate the exact moment everything got so fucked up,” (Barbra Streisand &Andrew S. Karsch, Barbra Streisand,1991). Tom replies “I'm also worried the Braves are gonna finish last,” (Barbra Streisand &Andrew S. Karsch, Barbra Streisand,1991). Using humor to defuse feeling communicates that you are not taking the situation seriously. Being the clown angers the wife because her request for him to be present in their life is being
Comedy often allows for a subversion of the status quo that is not tolerated in more serious genres. Beginning in the 1930s, the subgenre of screwball comedy presented female characters who were active and desiring, without evoking negative characterizations as "unfeminine" or "trampish." Screwball comedies represent a specific form of romantic comedy that features a complicated situation--or more often a series of complications--centered around a strong-willed, unpredictable female. The comedy is generally physical as well as verbal. Screwball and other forms of romantic comedy do not just reverse the masculine/active, feminine/passive paradigm--which as E. Ann Kaplan notes accomplishes little in terms of change--but instead strengthens the female and weakens the male just enough to put them on more equal footing.
We have all seen it done before, either in real life or in the movies. A situation is funny because of the misinterpretation of someone's actions or the complete conflict of what a situation seems to be and what it really is. People come into contact with sight gags all the time. One might be trying to be sneaky and hide something and then when someone looks, one pretends to be doing something else not to get caught. One could also pantomime using an umbrella as a baseball bat. These are both basic forms of sight gags.
Comedy differs in the mood it approaches and addresses life. It presents situations which deal with common ground of man’s social experience rather than limits of his behaviour – it is not life in the tragic mode, lived at the difficult and perilous limits of the human condition.
Humor has been the source of entertainment throughout history. Today humor is practiced in movies, plays, songs, television shows and radio. Humor has brought fame and fortune to those who have mastered its power.
If there is one way to bring a smile to someone’s face, it is laughter. Funny jokes, comical stunts, sarcasm- Every person is different when it comes to what makes them laugh. Some find dry humor comical. Others think sarcasm or joke-filled ranting are the best. ‘Comedy’ is such a broad term, broad enough to allow everyone to find something they find comical. In fact, ‘comedy’ includes a specific type of drama, one where the protagonist is joyful and happy endings are expected. Comedy is like a drug; it allows you to escape reality. When we say the word ‘comedy’ in the present, we are generally referring to a type of performance which provides humor. However, in its broadest sense, comedy has only one purpose: comedy makes people smile and