Comedy Definition of play

2.1.1.2 Comedy

Accessed at http:en.wikipedia.orgwikiComedy_drama3102009 8:47:12 PM explained that the word comedy is derived from the Classical Greek κωμῳδία, which is a compound either of κῶμος revel or κώμη village and ᾠδή singing: it is possible that κῶμος itself is derived from κώμη, and originally meant a village revel. The adjective comic Greek κωμικός, which strictly means that which relates to comedy is, in modern usage, generally confined to the sense of laughter-provoking. The word came into modern usage through the Latin comoedia and Italian commedia and has, over time, passed through various shades of meaning. Greeks and Romans confined the word comedy to descriptions of stage-plays with happy endings. In the middle ages, the term expanded to include narrative poems with happy endings and a lighter tone. In this sense Dante used the term in the title of his poem, La Divina Commedia. As time progressed, the word came more and more to be associated with any sort of performance intended to cause laughter. Comedy is often linked and contrasted with tragedy. Aristotle in his book The Poetics in Albert Cook, 1963:59 points out that comedy is inferior to tragedy, comedy imitates human life very badly. But in the further development some very talented writers, such as George Bernard Shaw, wrote comedies that were widly accepted by the reading public. He made use comedy to criticize English society. Much comedy contains variations on the elements of surprise, incongruity, conflict, repetitiveness, and there are also adult comedy, and the effect of opposite Universitas Sumatera Utara expectations, but there are many recognized genres of comedy. Satire and political satire use ironic comedy to portray persons or social institutions as ridiculous or corrupt, thus alienating their audience from the object of humor. A comedy of manners typically takes as its subject a particular part of society usually upper class society and uses humor to parody or satirize the behavior and mannerisms of its members. Romantic comedy is a popular genre that depicts burgeoning romance in humorous terms, and focuses on the foibles of those who are falling in love.

2.1.1.3 Tragic comedy