COMEDY

"It is widely assumed that Aristotle intended, or had already written, a companion
volume that concentrated on comedy, but this text, if it ever existed, is now lost."

o Many scholars believe that Aristotle either planned to write or had already
written a second part of Poetics focused on comedy. However, if such a text
ever existed, it has not survived.
2. "A brief document entitled the Tractatus Coislinianus, which outlines the
construction of jokes and catalogues types of comic characters, may offer an
insight into its content;"
o A short text called the Tractatus Coislinianus, which describes how jokes are
structured and categorizes different comedic character types, might provide
clues about what Aristotle’s lost work on comedy could have contained.
3. "but its own provenance is uncertain, being 'variously hailed as the key to
Aristotle's views on comedy and denounced as a sorry Byzantine fabrication'
(Janko, 1984:1)."
o However, the origins of the Tractatus Coislinianus are unclear. Some scholars
regard it as an important source reflecting Aristotle’s thoughts on comedy,
while others dismiss it as a later, inauthentic work from the Byzantine period.
4. "To what extent the existence of a comic Poetics would have improved the
reputation of comedy in academic or scholarly circles it is impossible to
speculate,"
o It is uncertain whether the discovery of a Poetics devoted to comedy would
have led to comedy being taken more seriously in intellectual and academic
contexts.
5. "yet given the centrality of Aristotle to the history of ideas, his implied validation
through an extended treatise would have undoubtedly improved its standing."
o However, because Aristotle has been such a crucial figure in the history of
thought, a full and explicit discussion of comedy from him would have likely
enhanced its legitimacy and importance in scholarly discussions.
6. "But the most important factor in deciding the status of comedy in the academy
is the simple fact that as tragedy occupies the privileged space in Poetics, it has
been seen to occupy the privileged space in literary culture."
o The main reason why comedy has been viewed as less significant in academic
and literary traditions is that Aristotle's Poetics places greater emphasis on
tragedy. Since Poetics is so influential, this emphasis has shaped the way
literature has been valued over time.
7. "The influence of Aristotle's brief remarks on the shape of generic thinking are
difficult to overstate:"
o Aristotle’s few comments on literary genres have had an enormous and lasting
impact on how literature is categorized and understood.
8. "'On this Aristotelian basis,' writes M.S. Silk, '...all subsequent Western theory
has been founded, most explicitly in the shape of a series of syntheses, late Greek,
Graeco-Roman or Renaissance, but explicitly or implicitly in all ages.'"
o Scholar M.S. Silk argues that Aristotle’s ideas form the foundation of nearly
all later Western literary theory. His influence can be seen explicitly in later
critical traditions, such as those of late antiquity, the Greco-Roman world, and
the Renaissance, and has continued to shape literary thought, whether directly
or indirectly, throughout history.
COMEDY
Summary

This passage discusses the lost Poetics on comedy and its potential impact. While some
scholars believe the Tractatus Coislinianus may contain echoes of Aristotle’s views on
comedy, its authenticity is debated. If Aristotle had written extensively on comedy, it might
have gained greater academic recognition. However, because Poetics privileges tragedy,
literary culture has followed suit. Aristotle’s influence on genre theory has been so profound
that his framework has shaped literary criticism across different historical periods.

Certainly! Here is a precise, line-by-line explanation while maintaining the original meaning:

1. "As comedy is a diffuse term, so its place within academic scholarship has often
been confused, even while its generic boundaries were at one time extremely
rigid."
o Comedy is a broad and somewhat ambiguous concept, which has led to
uncertainty about how it should be studied in academic fields. However, in the
past, the definition of comedy as a genre was much more strictly defined.
2. "The Roman comedy of Plautus (c. 254–184 BC) and Terence (c. 190 or 180–159
BC), known as 'New Comedy' and composed of a body of only twenty-six plays
that were adaptations of Greek originals,"
o The Roman playwrights Plautus and Terence wrote within the tradition of New
Comedy, a genre characterized by a set of only twenty-six surviving plays, all
of which were adaptations of earlier Greek works.
3. "was built almost exclusively on plots and characters so similar that to modern
readers the genre seems narrow and formulaic."
o These plays followed recurring storylines and character types to such an extent
that, from a modern perspective, New Comedy appears repetitive and
predictable.
4. "From another perspective, however, it tells us that the concept of comedy was
well defined, and that the form was specific, coherent, and specialized at this
time."
o However, the similarity of these plays also indicates that comedy, during this
period, had a clear and structured definition, with distinct and recognizable
conventions.
5. "The demarcations of comedy would never be so clear again."
o After this period, the boundaries of comedy as a genre would never be as
strictly defined again.
6. "During the medieval period, the identity of comedy became confused and its
boundaries blurred."
o In the Middle Ages, the concept of comedy became less clear, and it was no
longer distinguished as a sharply defined literary category.
7. "Drama that conformed to Aristotle's formulae or directly emulated the writers
of classical antiquity disappeared from literary culture with the fall of Rome."
o With the decline of the Roman Empire, theatrical works that adhered to
Aristotle’s theoretical principles or imitated the structure of classical Greek
and Roman comedy largely vanished from literary tradition.

Summary
COMEDY
This passage explains that while comedy today is an ambiguous term, it once had clear and
rigid boundaries, especially in Roman New Comedy. The works of Plautus and Terence were
highly formulaic, but this also meant comedy was well-defined. After antiquity, however, the
clarity of comedy’s definition was lost, especially in the medieval period, when classical
dramatic forms ceased to dominate literary culture.

Certainly! Here is a precise, line-by-line explanation while maintaining the original meaning:

1. "Empire and the degradation of the theatres, not to re-emerge until the fifteenth
century."
o With the decline of the Roman Empire and the deterioration of theatrical
traditions, comedy largely disappeared from public performance and would
not resurface as a significant dramatic form until the 15th century.
2. "Generations of medieval grammarians did keep Aristotle's definitions alive
alongside the texts of plays by Greek and Roman authors,"
o Throughout the medieval period, scholars who specialized in grammar and
rhetoric preserved Aristotle’s definitions of comedy, along with copies of
plays from ancient Greek and Roman playwrights.
3. "and the distinction between comedy and tragedy was upheld in commentaries
and treatises by writers such as Diomedes, Evanthius, and Donatus."
o Writers like Diomedes, Evanthius, and Donatus maintained the theoretical
distinction between comedy and tragedy in their scholarly writings, ensuring
that classical ideas about dramatic genres were not completely lost.
4. "But while these authors continued to transmit Hellenic ideas about comedy,
they had little or no first-hand experience of what they were writing about."
o However, although these medieval scholars preserved and passed on ancient
theories of comedy, they had little or no direct exposure to actual comedic
performances or living theatrical traditions.
5. "As a result, the classical definition of comedy maintained in scholarship had
little bearing on comedic practice."
o Consequently, the academic understanding of comedy, based on classical
definitions, had little connection to the way comedy was actually performed (if
at all) during the medieval period.

Summary

This passage explains that after the decline of the Roman Empire, comedy disappeared from
the theater until the 15th century. Despite this, medieval scholars preserved Aristotle’s
theories and classical texts, maintaining the distinction between comedy and tragedy in their
writings. However, because these scholars had no direct experience with comedic
performance, their theoretical understanding had little relevance to actual comedic practice
during the medieval era.

Certainly! Here is an accurate, line-by-line explanation while preserving the original

meaning:

1. "In the medieval period, comedy, previously conceived solely as drama, began to
appear in both prose and verse as a distinguishable mode or tone rather than a
technically rigid genre."
COMEDY
o During the Middle Ages, comedy, which had traditionally been understood
only as a form of drama, started to emerge in other literary forms, such as
prose and poetry. Instead of being strictly defined as a dramatic genre, it
became recognized as a particular tone or style within literature.
2. "As Paul G. Ruggiers writes, 'the forms of tragedy and comedy inherited from
classical antiquity had no real impact upon the like modes of experience...in the
Middle Ages, resulting in considerable diversity and discontinuity amongst
comic forms' (Ruggiers 1977:7; Shanzer, 2002:25)."
o Scholar Paul G. Ruggiers argues that the traditional structures of tragedy and
comedy from ancient Greece and Rome did not significantly influence the way
people in the Middle Ages experienced or understood these forms. As a result,
medieval comic literature became highly varied and inconsistent.
3. "Amongst other things, there developed alternative prose types to which were
attached the considerations of their serious and non-serious biases,"
o New forms of prose writing emerged in the medieval period, and these were
classified based on whether they dealt with serious or lighthearted subject
matter.
4. "and of the subject matter and vocabulary once reserved for the dramatic forms,
but now applied inadvertently to the narrative fictions (Ruggiers 1977:7)."
o Themes and language that had previously been used only in dramatic comedy
and tragedy were now being used, often unconsciously, in fictional storytelling
rather than in plays.
5. "This is the ultimate source of the problems of definition and confusion that
inevitably arise in discussions of comedy when comedy can describe at once a
dramatic genre, a literary mode, or instances of humour real or fictional."
o This shift in the use of comedy has led to ongoing confusion about its
definition. Today, comedy can refer to a traditional dramatic genre, a general
literary style, or even isolated moments of humor in both real life and fiction.
6. "Both Boccaccio (1313–75) and Chaucer (c. 1343–1400) were interested in the
textures and possibilities of comedy and tragedy, yet neither was a dramatist."
o Writers like Giovanni Boccaccio and Geoffrey Chaucer explored and
experimented with comedic and tragic elements in their works, but neither of
them wrote plays. Instead, they used these themes in narrative prose and
poetry.

Summary

In the medieval period, comedy expanded beyond its traditional role as a dramatic genre and
became a broader literary mode present in prose and verse. As a result, medieval comedy
became diverse and inconsistent. Themes and language once exclusive to drama were applied
to fiction, leading to difficulties in defining comedy. This shift is why comedy today can
mean a dramatic genre, a literary style, or simply humor. Writers like Boccaccio and Chaucer
explored comedic and tragic themes in their works, even though they were not playwrights.

Certainly! Here is a precise, line-by-line explanation while maintaining the original meaning:

1. "The clearest example of the broadening of the term in the medieval period is the
title of Dante's Divine Comedy (begun c. 1314), a poem that contains little that
may be described as humorous."
COMEDY
o The most notable instance of how the meaning of "comedy" expanded in the
medieval period is found in Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy. Although the
poem is called a "comedy," it does not contain much humor in the modern
sense of the word.
2. "Structurally, however, Dante's poem, like Greek and Roman comedy before it,
moves out of ignorance to understanding and towards a happy conclusion, or in
terms of its theological framework, from despair to eternal life."
o Despite lacking humor, The Divine Comedy follows a narrative pattern similar
to ancient Greek and Roman comedies: it begins in a state of confusion or
hardship and progresses toward knowledge and a positive resolution. In a
religious sense, this journey represents the transition from sin and despair to
salvation and eternal life.
3. "In a letter to his friend Can Grande, Dante further explains his choice of title
by indicating that it is written in what he calls 'an unstudied and low style'
(Dante, 1984:31)."
o Dante himself justifies the use of "comedy" in the title in a letter to his patron,
Can Grande della Scala, where he explains that his poem is written in a
straightforward and accessible style, rather than an elevated or highly refined
one.
4. "Medieval mystery and morality plays similarly incorporated comic elements in
accordance with these principles, 'comedy representing a condition of ignorance
prior to eventual salvation.'"
o Medieval religious dramas, such as mystery plays (which depicted biblical
events) and morality plays (which taught moral lessons), also included
comedic elements. These plays often portrayed comedy as representing a state
of ignorance or folly that was eventually overcome through divine grace and
redemption.
5. "The Vice figure of the drama was often intentionally humorous, an inversion of
the ideal qualities of humanity presented in the didacticism of the principal
narrative."
o In these plays, there was often a character known as the "Vice," a mischievous
and comic figure who represented human folly and moral weakness. This
character served as a contrast to the virtuous, idealized characters in the story,
who were meant to teach moral lessons.

Summary

Dante’s Divine Comedy exemplifies how the concept of comedy changed during the medieval
period, as it no longer referred strictly to humor but to a narrative structure that moves from
hardship to a happy resolution. Dante himself explained that his poem was called a "comedy"
because of its simple, direct style. Similarly, medieval religious plays used comedy to depict
ignorance before salvation, often featuring the humorous "Vice" character as a contrast to
moral virtue.

Certainly! Here is a precise, line-by-line explanation while maintaining the original meaning:

1. "With the rise of Humanism, the Renaissance educational movement that

devoted itself to the study of classical authors and the pursuit of pure literary
COMEDY
style, Aristotelian standards of generic difference were reintroduced to
literature."
o During the Renaissance, the intellectual movement known as Humanism,
which focused on studying classical Greek and Roman texts and refining
literary expression, led to the revival of Aristotle’s strict distinctions between
different literary genres.
2. "Humanist scholars returned to their sources in Greek and Roman texts, the
reputation of these volumes having flourished since the fall of Constantinople in
1453 and the reintroduction of otherwise overlooked authors it occasioned in
Western Europe,"
o Humanist thinkers looked back to ancient Greek and Roman literary works for
guidance. The demand for these classical texts increased after the fall of
Constantinople in 1453, an event that brought many forgotten or neglected
classical authors back into circulation in Western Europe.
3. "and sought to emulate their language, plots, and structures."
o These scholars attempted to imitate the style, storytelling techniques, and
structural principles found in Greek and Roman literature.
4. "Nicholas Udall's Ralph Roister Doister (1552), for example, widely recognized as
the first comic drama in English, proudly proclaimed its classical heritage:"
o An example of this classical influence is Ralph Roister Doister, written by
Nicholas Udall in 1552, which is considered the first English-language
comedy. The play openly acknowledged its debt to classical comedic
traditions.

Summary

The Renaissance revival of Humanism led to the reintroduction of Aristotle’s literary

classifications, as scholars revisited and emulated Greek and Roman texts. The fall of
Constantinople in 1453 played a key role in restoring interest in these classical works. This
influence is evident in Ralph Roister Doister (1552), the earliest known English comedy,
which consciously modeled itself on ancient comedic traditions.

This passage from Ralph Roister Doister expresses the play’s connection to classical comedic
traditions. Here is a precise, line-by-line explanation while preserving its meaning:

1. "The wyse poets long time heretofore,"

o The wise poets of the past, from long ago,
2. "Under merrie Comedies secretes did declare,"
o Used humorous comedies to reveal deeper truths or hidden messages.
3. "Wherein was contained very virtuous lore,"
o These comedies included moral lessons and wisdom.
4. "With mysteries and forewarnings very rare."
o They also contained profound insights and important warnings, which were
not commonly found elsewhere.
5. "Such to write neither Plautus nor Terence dyd spare,"
o The great Roman playwrights Plautus and Terence did not shy away from
writing in this tradition.
6. "Which among the learned at this day beares the bell;"
o Their works are still regarded as the finest among scholars today.
COMEDY
7. "These with such other therein dyd excel."
o These playwrights, along with others, mastered the art of writing comedies
with deeper meaning.

Summary

This excerpt praises the tradition of classical comedy, particularly as exemplified by Roman
playwrights Plautus and Terence. It suggests that comedies were not merely for entertainment
but also contained important moral lessons and hidden wisdom. The passage asserts that these
classical comedies are still admired by scholars and emphasizes that great poets of the past
excelled in combining humor with meaningful instruction.

Here is a precise, line-by-line explanation while maintaining the original meaning:

1. "Udall, headmaster at Eton, saw his play as an anglicized Latin comedy,

affording it both academic and moral integrity."
o Nicholas Udall, who was the headmaster of Eton College, viewed Ralph
Roister Doister as an English adaptation of Latin comedic traditions. This
connection to classical models gave the play both scholarly credibility and a
sense of moral seriousness.
2. "When, in 1588, Maurice Kyffin translated Terence's Andria in a version
principally to be used in schools, he prefaced the text with praise of Terence's
style, clearly revealing the influence of the comic theory of Donatus:"
o In 1588, Maurice Kyffin produced a translation of Andria, a play by the
Roman playwright Terence, primarily intended for educational use. In his
introduction, Kyffin praised Terence’s literary style, demonstrating the impact
of the Roman grammarian Donatus, who had written influential commentaries
on Terence’s comedies.
3. "Among all the Romane writers, there is none (by the judgement of the learned)
so much available to be read and studied, for the true knowledge and purity of
the Latin tong, as Pub. Terentius:"
o According to scholars, no Roman author is as valuable for studying and
mastering the Latin language as Publius Terentius (Terence).
4. "for, sith the cheefest matter in speech, is to speak properly and aptly, and that
we have not a more conning Craft-master of apt and proper speech than
Terence,"
o Since the most important aspect of language is to express oneself clearly and
appropriately, and because no one is more skilled in refined and accurate
expression than Terence,
5. "well worthy is he then, even will all ease and diligence, to be both taught and
learned before any other."
o Terence deserves to be studied and taught with the utmost care and attention,
even before any other Roman writer.

Summary

Udall sought to model Ralph Roister Doister on classical Latin comedy, reinforcing its
educational and moral value. Similarly, Maurice Kyffin’s 1588 translation of Terence’s
Andria was meant for use in schools. In his introduction, Kyffin praised Terence’s mastery of
COMEDY
Latin, aligning with the ideas of the Roman scholar Donatus. He argued that Terence was the
best model for learning proper Latin speech and should be prioritized in education.

Certainly! Let’s break down Sidney’s statement line by line while maintaining its original
meaning:

1. "Gross absurdities, how all their plays be neither right tragedies, nor right
comedies,"
→ Sidney criticizes the plays of his time for being absurd and lacking clear genre
distinctions. He argues that they are neither purely tragedies nor purely comedies.
2. "mingling kings and clowns, not because the matter so carrieth it,"
→ He objects to the mixing of high-status characters (kings) with low-status, comic
characters (clowns) when it is not justified by the story’s natural development.
3. "but thrust in the clown by head and shoulders"
→ Instead of being organically integrated, comic figures are forcibly inserted into
serious narratives. The phrase "by head and shoulders" suggests an unnatural,
awkward inclusion.
4. "to play a part in majestical matters with neither decency nor discretion,"
→ These clowns are made to participate in lofty, dignified affairs (such as those
concerning royalty or serious themes) in a way that lacks both proper taste
("decency") and good judgment ("discretion").
5. "so as neither the admiration and commiseration, nor the right sportfulness, is
by their mongrel tragic-comedy obtained."
→ Because of this improper mixing of tones and characters, the plays fail to achieve
either the awe and emotional engagement expected in tragedy ("admiration and
commiseration") or the proper amusement expected in comedy ("right sportfulness").
Sidney calls such works "mongrel tragic-comedy," meaning they are an impure,
disorderly blend of both genres.

In summary, Sidney argues that contemporary playwrights fail to maintain proper genre
distinctions, inserting comic elements into serious matters without justification. This disrupts
both the tragic and comic effects, leading to plays that succeed in neither.

Here is a precise, line-by-line explanation while maintaining the original meaning:

1. "Sidney's exasperation with mixed modes stems from a desire to impose

conformity on the drama of the Elizabethan stage, and to lend it some gravity."
o Sidney’s frustration with the blending of tragedy and comedy arises from his
wish to enforce strict genre distinctions in Elizabethan drama and give it a
greater sense of seriousness.
2. "Yet, as Stephen Orgel tells us, comedy was not 'simply the opposite of tragedy,
but... the largest condition of drama' during this period (Orgel, 1994:36)."
o However, scholar Stephen Orgel argues that, in this period, comedy was not
merely the counterpart to tragedy; rather, it was the dominant and most
encompassing element of drama.
3. "There is some anecdotal evidence that the comic aspects of Renaissance drama
may have been amongst the most prominent for contemporary audiences."
COMEDY
o Some historical accounts suggest that audiences of the Renaissance period
may have focused more on the comedic elements of plays than modern
interpretations assume.
4. "London doctor and astrologer Simon Forman, for example, records his
presence at a performance of The Winter's Tale on 15 May 1611."
o Simon Forman, a physician and astrologer in London, documented his
attendance at a performance of Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale on May 15,
1611.
5. "His report differs considerably from modern readings of the play as it
concentrates almost exclusively on the clown character of Autolycus,"
o His account of the play is quite different from modern interpretations because
he focuses almost entirely on the comedic character Autolycus.
6. "which leads him to conclude that the play is about 'feigned beggars or fawning
fellows' (Rowse, 1976:310)."
o As a result, he interprets the play as being primarily about deceitful beggars
and flattering tricksters, rather than the broader themes modern readers
emphasize.
7. "Similarly, the Swiss tourist Thomas Platter, in the playhouse for a performance
of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar at the Globe in 1599,"
o Likewise, the Swiss traveler Thomas Platter, who attended a performance of
Julius Caesar at the Globe Theatre in 1599,
8. "mentions little about the tragedy aside the dance that followed it,"
o Recorded very little about the tragic elements of the play, instead focusing on
the dance that took place afterward.
9. "which was performed 'exceedingly gracefully, according to their custom, two in
each group dressed in men's and two in women's apparel' (quoted in
Shakespeare, 1998:1)."
o He described this dance as being performed with great skill, following the
common custom of having two men and two women in each group.

Summary

Sidney opposed the mixing of comedic and tragic elements in Elizabethan drama, seeking to
make it more disciplined and serious. However, Stephen Orgel suggests that comedy was the
dominant force in drama at the time. Historical accounts from audience members support this
view: Simon Forman’s report on The Winter’s Tale focuses almost entirely on the comic
character Autolycus, and Thomas Platter’s description of Julius Caesar emphasizes the dance
performed after the play rather than its tragic content. These examples suggest that
Renaissance audiences may have been more drawn to the comedic and entertaining aspects of
theatre than modern interpretations acknowledge.

Line-by-line explanation while maintaining the original meaning:

1. "Throughout the medieval and renaissance periods, therefore, it seems that a

scholarly definition of comedy, loyal to the Aristotelian blueprint, existed
separately from popular plays, poems, and other vehicles for humour."
o During the medieval and Renaissance periods, academic definitions of comedy
—based on Aristotle’s framework—remained distinct from the kinds of
comedy found in popular entertainment, such as plays and poems.
COMEDY
2. "The academy's apparent distance from popular culture is confirmed in the
nineteenth and twentieth centuries and is concomitant with the rise of
professional English literary studies."
o This separation between scholarly definitions of comedy and popular culture
became even more evident in the 19th and 20th centuries, coinciding with the
emergence of English literary studies as an academic discipline.
3. "Inspired by the Victorian poet and critic Matthew Arnold (1822-88), and
largely concerned with what Chris Baldick calls 'questions of literature's social
function' (Baldick, 1987:18),"
o Influenced by the Victorian poet and critic Matthew Arnold (who emphasized
literature’s moral and social role), literary studies in this period, as Chris
Baldick notes, focused on the role of literature in society.
4. "the view of comedy in the universities at this time is best summed up by a
footnote in F.R. Leavis's study of the novel, The Great Tradition (1948),"
o The way comedy was regarded in universities can be seen in a footnote from
F.R. Leavis’s influential book The Great Tradition (1948), which comments
on comedic literature.
5. "that calls the work of eighteenth-century satirist Laurence Sterne
'irresponsible', 'nasty', and 'trifling' (Leavis, 1972:10)."
o In this footnote, Leavis dismisses the work of 18th-century satirist Laurence
Sterne as being frivolous, crude, and lacking in seriousness.
6. "As Baldick says elsewhere, critical opinion held that 'the author's quality of
mind [was] reflected in the quality of the literary work: to speak of the maturity
or integrity of one is to commend the other' (Baldick, 1996:164)."
o According to Baldick, literary critics of the time believed that an author's
intellectual depth and moral character were directly reflected in their writing—
works displaying "maturity" or "integrity" were considered superior.
7. "Comic themes were thought to be local and vulgar, antithetical to a vision of art
that believed in its ability to communicate beyond the moment of its creation like
tragedy."
o Comedy was seen as tied to specific social contexts and as lacking the
universal, timeless significance that tragedy was believed to possess.
8. "A passage from A.C. Bradley's prestigious British Academy lecture of 1912
expresses this idea."
o This notion is articulated in a well-regarded lecture delivered in 1912 by A.C.
Bradley, a respected literary critic.
9. "'Most of the great tragedies', he writes, ..."
o Bradley then elaborates on this idea, emphasizing the lasting value and depth
of tragedy.

Summary

Throughout the medieval and Renaissance periods, academic definitions of comedy (rooted
in Aristotle) remained distinct from popular comedic entertainment. This divide persisted into
the 19th and 20th centuries, especially as English literary studies became a professional
discipline. Influenced by Matthew Arnold’s emphasis on literature’s social role, scholars
largely dismissed comedy as trivial and unworthy of serious study. This is evident in F.R.
Leavis’s critique of Laurence Sterne as “irresponsible” and “trifling.” Scholars like A.C.
COMEDY
Bradley reinforced this bias by valuing tragedy’s supposed ability to transcend time, while
comedy was viewed as local and vulgar, lacking the depth attributed to great art.

This passage from A.C. Bradley emphasizes the unique and enduring significance of tragedy
in literature. Here’s a line-by-line explanation that preserves the original meaning:

1. "Leave a certain imaginative impression of the highest value..."

o Tragedy creates a profound and lasting emotional impact, which is of great
artistic and intellectual worth.
2. "What we witness is not the passion and doom of mere individuals."
o Tragedy is not just about the personal struggles or misfortunes of specific
characters.
3. "The forces that meet in tragedy stretch far beyond the little group of figures
and the tiny tract of space and time in which they appear."
o The conflicts in tragedy are not confined to the immediate characters or their
specific historical setting; they represent larger, universal forces.
4. "The darkness that covers the scene, and the light that strikes across it, are more
than our common night and day."
o The imagery of darkness and light in tragedy symbolizes something greater
than ordinary physical phenomena—it conveys deeper existential, moral, or
metaphysical truths.

Summary

Bradley suggests that tragedy has a unique power to convey universal themes and emotions
that go beyond individual experiences. It presents conflicts that symbolize broader human
struggles, giving it a timeless and profound artistic value.

This passage expresses the traditional literary establishment's view that comedy was seen as
less significant or prestigious than tragedy. Here’s a line-by-line explanation while preserving
the original meaning:

1. "The literary establishment view was that comedy did not belong in such
cultured and profound company,"
o Scholars and critics considered comedy unworthy of being placed alongside
more serious and esteemed forms of literature, such as tragedy.
2. "and that 'Comedy and satire should be kept in their proper place, like the
moral standards and social classes which they symbolize.'"
o Comedy and satire were believed to have a lower status, much like how rigid
social hierarchies and moral expectations dictated certain boundaries in
society.

Summary

The literary elite viewed comedy as less refined and intellectually valuable than tragedy.
They believed that comedy, like social classes and moral codes, should remain within its
designated sphere rather than being elevated to the level of high art.
COMEDY
This passage discusses the historical effort to establish comedy as a legitimate subject of
literary criticism, focusing on Francis Macdonald Cornford’s work. Here’s a line-by-line
explanation while maintaining the original meaning:

1. "The history of literary criticism is also the history of attempts to make an

honest creature, as it were, of comedy, writes David Daniell (Daniell 1997: 102)."
o The study of literature has often involved efforts to legitimize comedy as a
serious and respectable artistic form, rather than dismissing it as trivial or
insignificant.
2. "The first significant modern attempt to make comedy a 'serious' object of study
appeared in 1914, written by a scholar of Ancient Greece."
o The earliest major modern scholarly work treating comedy as a worthy subject
of critical analysis was published in 1914 by a specialist in Greek literature.
3. "Francis Macdonald Cornford's The Origin of Attic Comedy is a combination of
literary criticism and anthropology that attempts to reconstruct the sources and
forms of the original comic entertainments."
o Cornford’s book blends literary analysis with anthropological methods to trace
the origins and early development of comedy in Ancient Greece.
4. "Cornford was part of a Cambridge-based movement of anthropological
classicists,"
o Cornford belonged to a group of scholars at Cambridge University who used
anthropological approaches to study classical antiquity.
5. "and The Origin of Attic Comedy, like James George Frazer's enormous
anthropological survey The Golden Bough (1890-1915), is part of a broader
school of Edwardian scholarship that examined the ceremonies and beliefs of
primitive communities in an effort to see their influence on modern thinking and
social organization."
o His book is aligned with the intellectual trends of the Edwardian era,
particularly with studies like Frazer’s The Golden Bough, which analyzed
ancient rituals and customs to understand their impact on modern society and
thought.
6. "Cornford's text looks in detail at the structure of Greek Old Comedy, especially
that of Aristophanes, and demonstrates its ceremonial roots and the relationship
of its characters to significant elements of seasonal rituals."
o Cornford’s book closely examines the structure of early Greek comedy,
particularly the plays of Aristophanes, and connects them to traditional
ceremonies and seasonal religious festivals.
7. "Cornford argues for an aboriginal relationship between comedy and the
religiously sanctioned revel and fertility beliefs that stemmed from Dionysial and
Phallic ritual (Cornford, 1914:3)."
o He claims that the origins of comedy are deeply tied to ancient religious
celebrations, particularly those associated with Dionysian festivals and fertility
rites that involved phallic symbols.

Summary

The passage describes how Francis Macdonald Cornford’s The Origin of Attic Comedy was
one of the first major modern studies to treat comedy as a serious literary subject. Influenced
by anthropological methods, Cornford linked the structure of early Greek comedy, especially
COMEDY
Aristophanes' plays, to religious rituals and fertility celebrations. His work was part of a
broader scholarly movement in the early 20th century that sought to understand ancient
traditions and their influence on contemporary thought.

This passage explains the connection between ancient agrarian rituals and the development of
Old Comedy, particularly how rituals involving phallic symbols and verbal abuse influenced
comedic traditions. Here’s a line-by-line explanation while preserving the original meaning:

1. "The study describes how agrarian rituals, beginning with simple work-chants
and songs, developed in form and complexity until they had become invested
with significance that led to prepared and stylized activities growing up around
them."
o The research explains how early farming-related rituals started as basic songs
or chants used during work but gradually became more structured and
symbolically meaningful, leading to the creation of organized ceremonial
performances.
2. "A characteristic ritual of this type was the phallic procession, a parade of
phallic symbols that used profanity and sexual and scatological imagery as a
kind of benevolent magic to protect the community."
o One notable example of these rituals was the phallic procession, in which
people carried representations of male genitalia and used crude language,
sexual humor, and references to bodily functions. This behavior was believed
to have a protective effect, ensuring the well-being of the community through
a form of positive magic.
3. "As he writes, ‘Besides the distribution of benign influence...these processions
have also the converse magical intent of defeating and driving away bad
influences of every kind.’"
o Cornford explains that while these processions spread positive energy or
blessings, they also served a second purpose: to ward off harmful forces or
negative influences.
4. "‘The phallus itself is no less a negative charm against evil spirits than a positive
agent of fertilisation.’"
o The phallic symbol had a dual function: it was both a protective charm against
malevolent spirits and a representation of fertility, ensuring prosperity and
growth.
5. "‘But the simplest of all methods of expelling malign influences of any kind is to
abuse them with the most violent language....’"
o One of the most effective ways to drive away evil forces was through loud
verbal insults, curses, and offensive language, which were believed to have
magical power.
6. "‘There can be no doubt that the element of invective and personal satire which
distinguishes the Old Comedy is directly descended from the magical abuse of
the phallic procession, just as its obscenity is due to sexual magic.’"
o Cornford argues that the aggressive insults and sharp personal satire found in
Old Comedy originated from the verbal abuse used in phallic processions.
Similarly, the frequent use of crude humor and sexual references in comedy
can be traced back to ancient beliefs in the magical power of sexual
symbolism.
COMEDY
Summary

The passage explores how early agrarian rituals, particularly phallic processions, evolved into
comedic traditions. These processions used obscene imagery and verbal insults both as
protective charms and as fertility symbols. Cornford links these ancient practices to the
development of Old Comedy, arguing that its characteristic satire and crude humor originated
from these ritualistic performances.

This passage explains how ancient fertility rituals evolved into comedy, retaining their
humorous elements even after their original religious meanings were lost. Here's a line-by-
line explanation while preserving the original meaning:

1. "Through a process of historical accretion and growth, ceremonies of this kind

become formulaic, developing into a symbolic dialogue, or agon, from which
emerged drama."
o Over time, these rituals accumulated changes and became more structured,
eventually taking on a set form. This led to the creation of symbolic exchanges
or contests (known as agon in Greek drama), which later developed into full-
fledged theatrical performances.
2. "Comedy was now an identifiable form that retained its characteristics from
ancient folk practices long after the beliefs that nurtured them had either
become obsolete or been subsumed into the secular aspects of the performance."
o Comedy became a distinct genre, keeping many features from early folk
rituals, even though the religious meanings behind them had either
disappeared or been absorbed into non-religious entertainment.
3. "While the exact nature of this transformation is not entirely clear, Cornford
argues that the reason that the forms of the fertility songs and dances were
preserved after their religious significance had evaporated was because they
were, essentially, funny:"
o Although we do not fully understand how this shift from ritual to comedy
occurred, Cornford suggests that these songs and dances survived even after
their religious purpose was forgotten simply because they were amusing.
4. "The...double intent of stimulating fertility and averting bad influences lies at
the root of many forms of festival dance,"
o Many traditional festival dances originally served two purposes: to promote
fertility and to ward off negative forces.
5. "which, when the serious purpose has died out of them, are kept under the
sanction of old customs, and partly for the sake of pleasurable obscenity."
o Even after people stopped believing in their religious significance, these
performances continued because they were traditional and, more importantly,
because their crude humor and playful obscenity remained entertaining.

Summary

Ancient fertility rituals gradually evolved into theatrical performances, retaining many
comedic elements even after their original religious meanings were lost. Cornford argues that
these rituals persisted not because of their sacred significance but because they were
inherently humorous and enjoyable.
COMEDY
This passage explains how comedy evolved from ancient fertility rituals into a structured
dramatic form, retaining elements of celebration and renewal. Here’s a line-by-line
explanation while preserving the original meaning:

1. "Comedy now had well-defined structural components: the agon, in which the
hero-protagonist struggles with an adversary and wins;"
o Comedy developed a clear structure, including the agon—a dramatic contest
where the main character faces an opponent and emerges victorious.
2. "the enjoyment of the victory, celebrated by feast and sacrifice, and a final
victory procession, the komos, followed by marriage or some kind of
resurrection."
o After winning, the protagonist enjoys a celebration involving a feast and
possibly a ritual offering. The story typically ends with a komos (a jubilant
parade) and a symbolic renewal, such as marriage or a return to life,
reinforcing the themes of fertility and rebirth.
3. "The relationship of comedy to agrarian fertility rituals is most clearly seen in
Aristophanes' play The Acharnians (425 BC), the oldest comedy in existence."
o Comedy's connection to ancient agricultural fertility rituals is evident in The
Acharnians, the earliest surviving comedic play by Aristophanes.
4. "Having been drinking, the farmer Dikaiopolis mounts a phallus on a pole and
celebrates his 'Country Dionysia' by making offerings of cake and asking the god
to bless his sexual adventures with the neighbor's slave:"
o In the play, the protagonist, a farmer named Dikaiopolis, participates in a
private festival (a rural version of the Dionysian celebrations) by erecting a
phallic symbol, making ritual offerings, and seeking divine favor for his
sexual exploits.
5. "'For now is the time to be merry, with pleasure for one and all' (Aristophanes,
1973:61)."
o Dikaiopolis expresses the spirit of comedy—revelry, communal joy, and
uninhibited pleasure.
6. "Comedy, then, is a secularized version of a ritual that was so entertaining that it
could not be allowed to die out."
o Over time, comedy lost its religious function but survived because it was
inherently enjoyable. Its humor and festive elements ensured its continued
existence, even after its sacred origins were forgotten.

Summary

Comedy evolved from ancient fertility rituals into a structured dramatic form. It retained
elements of contest (agon), victory, celebration, and renewal. The Acharnians illustrates these
connections, showing how comedic performance originated from Dionysian festivities.
Ultimately, comedy persisted because of its sheer entertainment value, outlasting its religious
roots.

This passage discusses how Cornford’s approach to comedy signaled a shift in academic
thinking, aligning with broader cultural and intellectual movements of the early 20th century.
Here’s a line-by-line explanation while preserving the original meaning:
COMEDY
1. "The methodological impulse of Cornford's text, a return to ritualistic sources
and an examination of the cultural significance of the comic, was representative
of a new departure in modern academic treatments of comedy."
o Cornford’s study introduced a fresh approach by tracing comedy back to its
ritualistic origins and exploring its cultural role, marking a shift in how
comedy was analyzed in academic circles.
2. "Studies of this kind give comedy a credibility that it did not possess in the
qualitative analyses and exclusions of English Literature departments."
o By grounding comedy in historical and cultural analysis rather than dismissing
it as trivial, such studies helped establish comedy as a serious subject of
scholarly interest—something it previously lacked in traditional English
literature studies.
3. "It also had the benefit of providing it with the best classical ancestry."
o This approach legitimized comedy by linking it to prestigious classical
traditions, making it more academically respectable.
4. "Cornford's study was also a product of its time, as for all its experimentalism,
the literary culture of modernism was simultaneously fascinated by the distant
myths of pre-Christian Europe."
o Though innovative, Cornford’s work reflected broader modernist interests in
ancient European myths and traditions, showing how modernist scholars
sought meaning in the distant past.
5. "The fundamental identity of the people was a compelling issue in the first half
of the twentieth century, and the compilation and analysis of myth fuelled a
popular or 'folk' image of the past."
o During this period, there was a strong interest in national and cultural identity,
leading scholars and artists to study myths and folklore to construct a shared
historical consciousness.
6. "Perhaps this was an attempt at finding roots in an otherwise alienating modern
world, but its implications are wider."
o This interest in myth and folklore may have been a reaction to the
disorientation of modernity, but it also had broader cultural and political
consequences.
7. "Its symptoms appear all over modernist literature; for example, the high
visibility of both The Golden Bough and Jessie Weston's From Ritual to Romance
in the footnotes of T.S. Eliot's The Waste Land (1922) indicates that the themes of
modern fragmentation in the poem hope to find anchors in the mythic past."
o Modernist literature, such as Eliot’s The Waste Land, frequently referenced
myth and folklore, using them as a framework to address the fractured,
disoriented nature of contemporary life.
8. "In Britain, there was concern that colonizing the world meant losing a sense of
self."
o As Britain expanded its empire, there was growing anxiety that its own
cultural identity was being eroded in the process.
9. "Anxiety about the loss of indigenous culture was reflected in, for example, the
founding of institutions such as Cecil Sharp's English Folk Dance Society in
1911, which began its work collecting songs and dances from a provincial and
predominantly oral tradition."
COMEDY
o This fear of losing cultural roots led to efforts like Cecil Sharp’s English Folk
Dance Society, which sought to preserve traditional English music and dance,
particularly those passed down orally in rural communities.
10. "Comedy, understood in these terms, is an authentic, continuous expression of
the communal identity as it encounters the life force."

 In this context, comedy is seen as a living tradition that reflects and sustains
communal identity, embodying the vitality and resilience of culture across time.

Summary

Cornford’s work legitimized comedy by linking it to ancient rituals and broader cultural
traditions, aligning with early 20th-century scholarly interests in myth, identity, and folk
traditions. This movement, reflected in modernist literature and institutions preserving
folklore, sought to reconnect with the past as a response to the uncertainties of modernity.

This passage explores how Henri Bergson and Susanne Langer conceptualized comedy as an
expression of vitality. Here’s a breakdown of the key ideas while maintaining the original
meaning:

1. "The philosophy of Henri Bergson (1859-1941) has been influential in conceiving

of comedy as a manifestation of vitality."
o Bergson’s ideas helped shape the view that comedy is a fundamental
expression of life and energy.
2. "Central to Bergson's thought were the dynamic forces of intuition and impulse,
the 'élan vital,' creative and demanding life forces that reveal themselves to us
continually and through which all social interaction is mediated."
o Bergson’s philosophy emphasized élan vital, a creative life force that drives
existence and underlies all human interactions.
3. "Bergson's famous essay Laughter (1900), discussed in further detail in Chapter
6, claims that humour is born in moments when the life force is momentarily
usurped or eclipsed by an involuntary manifestation of automatism or reduction
of the body to a lifeless machine."
o In Laughter, Bergson argues that comedy arises when something living
appears mechanical or rigid, disrupting the natural fluidity of life.
4. "The fullest articulation of comedy as vitalism appears in Susanne Langer's
study of aesthetics, Feeling and Form, which also calls Bergson 'pre-eminently
the artist's philosopher' (Langer, 1953: 114)."
o Langer expands on Bergson’s ideas, viewing comedy as a celebration of life
and creativity, and she praises Bergson for his insights into artistic expression.
5. "For Langer, art is an intuitive and essentially creative process driven by the
need to be alive."
o She sees art as fundamentally tied to human vitality and the instinct to express
and affirm life.
6. "Comedy is: an art form that arises naturally wherever people are gathered to
celebrate life, in spring festivals, triumphs, birthdays, weddings, or initiations."
o Langer argues that comedy is an organic part of human celebrations and
rituals, appearing whenever life is affirmed.
COMEDY
7. "For it expresses the elementary strains and resolutions of animate nature, the
animal drives that persist even in human nature, the delight man takes in his
special mental gifts that make him the lord of creation;"
o Comedy reflects both basic instincts and uniquely human intelligence,
capturing the tension and resolution of life’s struggles.
8. "It is an image of human vitality holding its own in the world amid the surprises
of unplanned coincidence."
o Ultimately, comedy represents resilience and adaptability, showing how
people navigate the unpredictability of life.

Summary

Bergson and Langer both interpret comedy as an expression of human vitality. Bergson sees
humor as arising when life becomes rigid and mechanical, while Langer frames comedy as a
spontaneous and life-affirming force that naturally emerges in human celebrations. Together,
their views position comedy as an essential and profound artistic form, tied to both instinct
and intellect.

This passage continues the discussion of comedy as an essential part of human experience
while also addressing a major critique of this perspective. Here’s a breakdown of its key
points:

1. "This version of the comic exists in the routine obscenity surrounding marriage
celebrations, in the jubilant nicknaming of genitalia, or in bouts of celebratory
drinking that follow a triumph, however minor."
o Comedy often manifests in everyday rituals of joy, such as wedding jokes,
playful sexual humor, and drinking celebrations.
2. "What is important, emphasizes Langer, is that the comic spirit constitutes an
essential element of being human and, more importantly, being alive."
o Langer sees comedy as a fundamental expression of life and human nature.
3. "This definition is complicated by the very full tradition of black humour that
exists in Western culture, and which is prevalent in both literature and social
interaction."
o However, this life-affirming view of comedy is challenged by the existence of
dark humor, which often deals with death and suffering.
4. "Jokes about death or the fear of death can be devastatingly funny, but do not
seem to conform to Langer's model unless morbid reflection itself constitutes a
triumphant acknowledgement that one is still breathing."
o Dark humor does not easily fit into Langer’s idea of comedy as a celebration
of life—unless laughing at death itself can be seen as an act of defiant
survival.
5. "What is important about the work of Bergson and Langer is that it positions
comedy at the ontological centre."
o Bergson and Langer help reframe comedy as a fundamental part of human
existence, rather than a trivial or secondary genre.
6. "In claiming for comedy a close relationship to fertility ritual, rites of passage,
and reproductive events, these writers reintroduced comedy into the academic
mainstream as a genre in which the fundamental imprint of human existence is
as evident as in its tragic counterpart."
COMEDY
o By linking comedy to essential human experiences like birth, sex, and rites of
passage, they restore its academic legitimacy, making it as significant as
tragedy.
7. "However, in doing so they also reproduced the terms of the argument that
elevated tragedy and denigrated comedy:"
o Yet, in their attempt to validate comedy, Bergson and Langer inadvertently
reinforced the old hierarchy that placed tragedy above comedy.
8. "Even though comedy has been shown to be an object worthy of significant
study, it is simultaneously shown to be closer to nature than art, and closer,
therefore, to the body than the soul."
o Their approach still implies that comedy is more instinctual and bodily, while
tragedy remains intellectual and spiritual—echoing past biases against comedy
as an art form.

Summary

This passage highlights how Bergson and Langer helped elevate comedy within academia by
showing its deep connection to human experience. However, their framing also
unintentionally reinforced old prejudices, suggesting that comedy is more physical and
instinctual, whereas tragedy remains more sophisticated and profound.

This passage discusses how comedy, despite its historical marginalization, gained legitimacy
in literary studies by being linked to "high culture" and universal mythological structures.
Here’s a breakdown of its key points:

1. "It is no accident that literary studies devoted to the study of comedy should
appear first in areas that are unquestionably perceived as belonging to 'high
culture'"
o Comedy was first legitimized in academic studies through its connection to
prestigious literary traditions, rather than as an independent form worthy of
serious study.
2. "as if their association with culturally central concepts would protect them from
accusations of low-mindedness."
o By linking comedy to grand philosophical or cultural ideas, scholars could
defend it against the perception of being crude or trivial.
3. "The trope of comedy as life force is particularly evident in Shakespeare studies,
much of it indebted to the distinguished work of the Canadian scholar Northrop
Frye (1906-91)"
o Frye’s work was crucial in framing comedy as an essential force in literature,
particularly in Shakespearean plays.
4. "who saw in Shakespearean comedy a spirit of regeneration in sympathy with
the natural rhythm of the seasons."
o Frye interpreted comedy as part of a larger natural cycle, aligning it with
themes of rebirth and renewal.
5. "Basing itself on a series of archetypal structures in harmony with the four
seasons of the year, Frye's The Anatomy of Criticism (1957) offers the idea that
'the fundamental form of [mythical] process is cyclical movement, the
alternation of success and decline, effort and relapse, life and death' (Frye,
1990:158)."
COMEDY
o Frye argued that literature, particularly older narratives, follows a cyclical
structure, reflecting patterns of nature and human life.
6. "Humanity, in other words, creates an imaginatively inhabitable world of
literary fiction carved from the patterns of life and death that assimilates the
idea of seasonal rejuvenation into narrative."
o Literature helps people make sense of existence by mirroring the rhythms of
nature, especially in pre-modern works.
7. "This is the case especially with narrative produced prior to the advent of
modernity and the demythologization of culture that accompanied it."
o Before modernity, narratives were more mythological and symbolic, whereas
modern literature often moves away from these structures.
8. "Narrative patterns, writes Frye, are usually divided into four main phases, the
four seasons of the year being the type for four periods of the day (morning,
noon, evening, night), four aspects of the water-cycle (rain, fountains, rivers, sea
or snow), four periods of life (youth, maturity, age, death) and the like."
o Frye identifies recurring archetypal patterns in literature, linking them to
natural cycles like the seasons, time of day, and stages of life.

Summary

Comedy gained legitimacy in literary studies by being linked to "high culture" and universal
mythological structures. Northrop Frye’s work was instrumental in this, interpreting comedy
as part of a broader cycle of life, death, and renewal. His structuralist approach framed
comedy within recurring literary and natural patterns, reinforcing its importance in literature,
especially in Shakespearean studies.

This passage elaborates on Northrop Frye’s theory of literary archetypes and how they relate
to seasonal cycles, particularly in the context of comedy. Here’s a breakdown of the key
ideas:

1. Meta-Generic Forms and the Seasons

o Frye identifies broader narrative categories that underpin specific literary
genres:
 Romantic (Summer) – A time of fulfillment and adventure.
 Tragic (Autumn) – A period of decline and inevitable downfall.
 Ironic/Satiric (Winter) – A harsh, skeptical, and often critical view of
human nature.
 Comic (Spring) – A phase of renewal, growth, and rebirth.
2. Comedy and Spring: A Time of Rebirth
o Spring, as a transitional season, is associated with themes of renewal,
transformation, and overcoming hardship.
o This aligns with comedy's structure, which often resolves conflicts through
reconciliation, love, and festivity.
3. The ‘Green World’ in Shakespearean Comedy
o Frye’s concept of the “Green World” is a recurring setting in Shakespearean
comedies.
o It represents an idyllic, often magical space where characters escape social
constraints and experience personal growth or transformation.
o Common examples from Shakespeare:
COMEDY
 A Midsummer Night’s Dream – The enchanted forest outside
Athens.
 Twelfth Night – The romanticized coast of Illyria.
 The Merchant of Venice – Portia’s Belmont, a space of resolution and
judgment.
 As You Like It – The Forest of Arden, where societal norms are
relaxed, and love flourishes.
4. Function of the Green World
o The Green World allows for a temporary escape from societal order,
fostering love, playfulness, and class fluidity.
o Problems introduced in urban settings (courtly intrigue, mistaken identity,
rigid social norms) are resolved here before characters return to their everyday
lives, transformed and reconciled.

Summary

Frye’s theory links comedy to the season of spring, emphasizing renewal, rebirth, and
resolution. The “Green World” functions as a space where social conflicts are temporarily
suspended and worked through, making it a crucial setting in Shakespearean comedies. This
concept reinforces the restorative and transformative power of comedy within literature.

Here’s a detailed, line-by-line explanation in simpler language while keeping the original
meaning intact:

1. "As court or city rules no longer apply, gender distinctions can be disregarded,
the mythical and the quotidian can intermingle, and drunks and braggarts are
able to live freely away from the tyranny of work or the regime of the clock."
o In the Green World (a space outside the usual laws of society), the strict rules
of the city or court do not apply.
o People can ignore gender roles, meaning men and women can behave
differently than expected.
o Everyday reality (quotidian) and mythical elements (like magic or fantasy)
mix together.
o People who drink a lot (drunks) and those who boast (braggarts) can enjoy
themselves without worrying about work schedules or time constraints.

2. "In order to solve the problems of the town, represented by a 'blocking agent',
usually a father figure or envoy of the older generation, whose blind insistence
on his authority forbids the success of relationships founded on love,"
o The problems of society are often represented by a character called the
"blocking agent."
o This character is usually an older man, such as a strict father or an official,
who represents traditional rules and authority.
o He stands in the way of young lovers by insisting that his power and
decisions must be obeyed, even if they are unfair.
COMEDY
3. "Society must be divested of its most fundamental suppositions, such as the
nature of law, or the relationship between the sexes, in order that those
suppositions may be reconstructed in the form of a happy ending."
o In order to fix society’s problems, people need to temporarily let go of their
deepest beliefs (fundamental suppositions) about laws, gender roles, and
authority.
o Once they do this, these ideas can be reshaped in a way that leads to
happiness, meaning rules and relationships can be redefined to allow love and
joy to flourish.

4. "Immersion in the green world is immeasurably healing, but always temporary;

holiday is defined only as such because it must be distinguished from the
everyday world."
o Spending time in the Green World is a healing experience that helps
characters grow, change, and solve their problems.
o However, it never lasts forever—it is only a temporary escape from normal
life.
o Just like a holiday is special because it is different from regular life, the
Green World must be separate from everyday society.

5. "In the narrative of As You Like It, says Frye, Rosalind is the representative of
spring, inspiring renewal in the dormant inhabitants of Arden and ultimately
triumphing over the cruel and unforgiving winter of Duke Frederick."
o In Shakespeare’s play As You Like It, the character Rosalind represents
spring, which symbolizes renewal, growth, and new beginnings.
o When she enters the Forest of Arden, she revives and inspires the people
who live there, who had become stagnant or inactive (dormant).
o Rosalind’s positive and lively energy helps overcome the harsh and strict
rule of Duke Frederick, who represents winter (coldness, cruelty, and
oppression).

6. "Through her intervention, made possible by her entry into the forest, the
unlawfully usurped Duke Senior is reinstated, reconciliations are brought about,
and, after a round of divinely sponsored weddings, society is rejuvenated with
the promise of a new ruling generation and their heirs."
o Rosalind’s actions and influence (her intervention) happen because she
enters the forest, where normal rules do not apply.
o As a result, Duke Senior, who had been unfairly removed from power
(unlawfully usurped), regains his rightful position.
o Conflicts are resolved, and people who were previously in disagreements
reconcile (make peace with each other).
COMEDY
o Many marriages take place, which symbolize new beginnings and
happiness.
o Society is refreshed and given new life because there is now a new
generation of rulers and children, ensuring a hopeful future.

Final Summary:

This passage explains how Shakespearean comedy, particularly As You Like It, follows
Frye’s "Green World" theory. Characters enter a magical or free space where normal
rules do not apply, allowing love and joy to flourish. However, this escape is only
temporary, and by the end, they must return to society, but in a renewed and improved
form. Rosalind, as the symbol of spring, brings healing, reconciliation, and renewal,
leading to a happy ending with marriages, restored leadership, and a hopeful future.

Here's a breakdown of the passage in simpler terms while keeping its meaning intact:

Frye’s Theory Is Convincing but Has Two Main Problems

1. "Frye's account is both convincing and symmetrically satisfying, but it brings

with it two key objections."
o Frye's explanation of comedy is logical and well-structured, making it
persuasive.
o However, there are two major issues with his argument.

First Objection: Structure Over Content

2. "The first is the extent to which comedic structure is privileged over content, the
degree that his discussion of varied and distinct plays can become a list of titles
whose similarity rests on their final reconciliations."
o Frye’s theory focuses too much on the structure of comedies rather than
their actual stories or themes.
o His analysis of different comedies reduces them to a checklist where their
main similarity is that they all end happily.
o This approach overlooks what makes each play unique.
3. "This is a shortcoming of all structuralist and narratological critical practices,
and in mitigation it should be noted that Frye's project aims to study structural
similarities and not offer close readings of individual texts."
o This problem is common in structuralist and narrative-based approaches to
literature.
o However, to be fair to Frye, his goal was to analyze common patterns rather
than to study individual plays in detail.
4. "However, through the reduction to narrative units, literary difference is lost
through the absorption into a homogenized structural model."
COMEDY
o But by breaking literature down into simple story structures, he ignores
what makes each work different and special.
o His model treats all comedies as if they were the same, which
oversimplifies the diversity of the genre.
5. "A recurrent problem of comedy criticism is its focus on structure and plot over
character and dialogue, a result of both the critical prejudice that tragic heroes
are individuals, and the practice of writing comic ones as types."
o Comedy criticism often emphasizes plot over characters and dialogue.
o This happens because tragedies are seen as more character-driven, with
tragic heroes viewed as deep, unique individuals.
o In contrast, comic characters are often written as stereotypes ("types"),
making critics focus more on story structure than on individual character
development.

Second Objection: Do Seasons Really Shape Literature?

6. "The second objection would be the extent to which a large part of The Anatomy
of Criticism depends on our acceptance of Frye's overall thesis that literary
forms, at least in the originary phases of their development, mirror the
procession of the seasons in what amounts to a grossly extended pathetic
fallacy."
o Frye’s entire theory relies on the idea that literary genres originally followed
the pattern of the four seasons.
o This idea is a kind of "pathetic fallacy"—a term used when human emotions
or ideas are projected onto nature (for example, assuming that spring
symbolizes happiness and winter represents sadness).
o The problem is that Frye applies this seasonal pattern to all literature,
which may be overly simplistic.
7. "Does all literature conform in tone to the overbearing influence of four
seasons?"
o Does every literary work really match the mood of a specific season?
o Are all comedies like spring, all tragedies like autumn, etc.?
o This assumption might not hold true for every story.
8. "Are all writers informed by an unconscious force that imposes itself on their
work through an enigmatic process of arboreal ventriloquism?"
o Frye’s theory suggests that writers are unconsciously influenced by nature
(as if the seasons are "speaking" through them, like a tree acting as a
ventriloquist).
o This metaphor questions whether authors really follow nature’s cycles
when writing, or if this is just a forced interpretation.
9. "Is it entirely inconceivable that a narrative could be constructed and read
outside those terms?"
o Is it impossible to write a story that does not fit Frye’s seasonal structure?
o Frye’s model suggests that all literature follows this cycle, but in reality,
some narratives may not fit into this pattern at all.
COMEDY
Final Summary:

The passage criticizes Frye’s theory on two main points:

1. It prioritizes story structure over actual content, treating all comedies as if they are
the same just because they end in reconciliation.
2. It assumes that all literature follows the cycle of the four seasons, which may not
be true for every story. The idea that all writers unconsciously follow nature’s
patterns is questioned, as some works may not fit into this framework at all.

Here’s a line-by-line explanation of the passage in simpler terms while keeping its meaning
accurate:

Barber’s Criticism of Structural Readings (Opposing Frye)

1. "Another influential Shakespearean, C.L. Barber, believed that structural

readings of literature failed to grasp the truth of art."
o C.L. Barber, a well-known Shakespeare scholar, disagreed with the idea that
analyzing a play’s structure fully captures its artistic meaning.
2. "In his Shakespeare's Festive Comedy (1959), he indirectly challenges Frye with
an accusation of insensitivity, writing that, 'No figure in the carpet is the carpet."
o In his book, Barber challenges Northrop Frye’s structural approach.
o He argues that identifying patterns in literature is not the same as
understanding the full artistic experience.
o He uses a metaphor: a single design in a carpet is not the same as the whole
carpet—just like a play's structure does not represent its full artistic
meaning.
3. "There is in the pointing out of patterns something that is opposed to life and
art, an ungraciousness which artists in particular feel and resent (Barber,
1963:4).
o Barber believes that focusing too much on patterns can be cold and lifeless.
o Real art and life itself are more than just structured patterns.
o Artists, in particular, dislike when their work is reduced to patterns rather
than appreciated for its full meaning.

Barber’s Alternative Approach: Comedy and Holiday Traditions

4. "For Barber, literature is full of moments of 'design beyond design' that possess
a vitality that resonates much further than the generic and narrative structures
in which they are placed."
o Barber believes literature contains deeper meaning that goes beyond just
structure.
o These moments have a unique energy (vitality) that extends far beyond
simple structural patterns.
COMEDY
5. "Barber's intention, and the nature of his contribution to the understanding of
comedy, was to demonstrate the relevance of the Elizabethan social practice of
holiday festivities that inform comedy and are reflected in it."
o Barber wanted to show that Shakespeare’s comedies were influenced by
holiday traditions from Elizabethan times.
o Many elements of comedy come from the celebrations, festivals, and social
customs of that period.
6. "This is a sixteenth-century remodelling of The Origin of Attic Comedy,
privileging a historicist methodology that holds an understanding of original
context above other means of reading a literary text."
o Barber’s approach is similar to an earlier study of Ancient Greek Comedy,
but adapted for the 16th century.
o He uses a historicist method, which means he believes literature should be
understood by looking at its historical and cultural background rather than
just abstract patterns.

Holidays and Their Role in Shakespearean Comedy

7. "The practices he invokes include festivals like 'the celebration of a marriage,

the village wassail or wake... Candlemas, Shrove Tuesday, Hocktide, May Day,
Whitsuntide, Midsummer Eve, Harvest-home, Halloween and the twelve days of
Christmas season ending with Twelfth Night' (Barber, 1963:5)."
o Barber lists many traditional English holidays and festivals that he believes
influenced Shakespeare’s comedies.
o These events were times of joy, social inversion, and celebration, which are
key themes in comedy.
8. "Such holidays provide the basis for the staged folly, disguise, and masquerade
of any number of Shakespeare's plays."
o Shakespeare’s comedies often include:
 Foolishness (folly)
 Disguises
 Masquerades (people pretending to be someone else)
o These come directly from holiday traditions, where such playful behaviors
were common.

Barber’s Concept of "Saturnalian" Comedy

9. "For Barber, comedy is essentially 'saturnalian', an experience of pleasurable

merrymaking and social inversion named after the revels devoted to the Roman
god Saturn."
o Barber describes comedy as "Saturnalian", meaning it is like the ancient
Roman festival of Saturnalia.
o During Saturnalia, people partied, broke social rules, and reversed
traditional roles—just like in many comedies.
COMEDY
10. "Saturnalian comedy is neither satirical nor political, but devoted to a process
Barber calls 'release and clarification'."

 Saturnalian comedy is not about making political statements or satirizing society.

 Instead, it serves two functions:
1. "Release" – A temporary break from social rules.
2. "Clarification" – A way of renewing and reaffirming positive social
relationships.

11. '"Release' refers to the loosening of social controls during holidays, and leads
Barber, like Freud, to ascribe comic pleasure to the redistribution of mental
energy normally devoted to social conformity, so that 'the energy normally
occupied in maintaining inhibitions is freed for celebration' (Barber, 1963:7)."

 "Release" happens when people temporarily let go of rules and restrictions,

similar to how people behave during holidays.
 This idea is similar to Freud’s theory, which suggests that comedy allows people to
use mental energy that would normally be spent on following social rules for
pleasure and fun instead.

12. '"Clarification" is comedy's ability to reaffirm the positive relationship of

humanity to its environment, a heightened relationship between man and
"nature"' (Barber, 1963:8)."

 "Clarification" means that comedy helps people reconnect with each other and the
world.
 It reinforces the importance of joy, relationships, and life itself.

Comedy Celebrates Life, but Also Excludes "Killjoys"

13. "Comedy thereby has the dual function of celebrating human relationships and
merrymaking, while mocking what it considers 'unnatural', baiting killjoys and
miserly characters who fail to observe the feast or show some perverse aversion
to happiness."

 Comedy has two main roles:

1. To celebrate joy and human connection.
2. To mock those who refuse to take part in happiness (people who are too
serious, greedy, or antisocial).

14. "From this perspective, Barber reads a character like Shylock from The
Merchant of Venice as a representative of anti-festival, a usurer whose anxiety
about money stands in joyless contrast to the Venetian Christians who use
money 'graciously to live together in a humanly knit group' (Barber, 1963:167)."

 Barber sees Shylock (a Jewish moneylender in The Merchant of Venice) as the

opposite of the festive spirit.
COMEDY
 Shylock is obsessed with money and contracts, whereas the Venetian Christians in
the play use money to enjoy life and strengthen their community.

15. "As the defeat of outsiders and the chastisement of scapegoats is a significant
aspect of the comic celebration of communal identity and its life experience, the
vilification and forcible conversion of Shylock reveal him as a representative of
egregious heterogeneity that must be made to conform to healthy community
values."

 Comedy often targets outsiders or rule-breakers, forcing them to either conform

or be punished.
 In The Merchant of Venice, Shylock is treated as an outsider who must be
humiliated and converted to Christianity to fit into the "happy ending" of the play.

16. "However, Barber's insistence on holiday forms, while not absolute in his
discussion of The Merchant of Venice, has the effect of naturalizing folk practices
and eliding the politics of race that speak through them."

 While Barber’s theory explains a lot about comedy, it also ignores the racial and
political implications in plays like The Merchant of Venice.
 He treats Shylock’s exclusion as just part of a festive tradition, rather than
acknowledging the real issues of racial and religious discrimination in the play.

Final Summary:

Barber criticizes structuralist readings like Frye’s and instead argues that Shakespearean
comedy is rooted in holiday traditions. He introduces the concept of Saturnalian comedy,
which allows for social freedom and joy but also excludes those who refuse to conform.
However, his approach overlooks important racial and political issues in comedy,
especially in plays like The Merchant of Venice.

Here's a line-by-line explanation of the passage in simple language without changing its
meaning:

Original Sentence & Simplified Explanation

1. "With the re-emergence and dominance of forms of historicism in literary

studies in the 1980s and 1990s, the work of one commentator, Mikhail Bakhtin
(1895-1975), has been extremely influential."
o In the 1980s and 1990s, historicism (a way of studying literature by focusing
on historical context) became popular again. During this time, the ideas of
Mikhail Bakhtin, a literary scholar, became very important.
2. "Bakhtin, a Russian formalist who first began working on a theory of the novel
after the Russian Revolution, made a major contribution to comedy studies with
the monograph Rabelais and His World,"
COMEDY
o Bakhtin was a Russian scholar who studied literature using formalism (a
method that focuses on structure and style). He started developing his ideas
about novels after the Russian Revolution (which happened in 1917). One of
his most important contributions to the study of comedy was a book called
Rabelais and His World.
3. "written as a doctoral dissertation sometime in the later 1930s and unpublished
in English until 1968."
o Bakhtin originally wrote Rabelais and His World as his PhD thesis in the late
1930s, but it was not translated into English until 1968.

Here's a line-by-line explanation of the passage in simple language without changing its
meaning:

Original Sentence & Simplified Explanation

1. "Through an analysis of the early modern French comic novelist François

Rabelais (c. 1494-c. 1553), Bakhtin argues for the existence of two synchronous
but contradictory world views during the medieval period."
o Bakhtin studies the work of François Rabelais, a French comic writer from the
early modern period (around 1494–1553). He believes that, during the
medieval period, there were two different but coexisting ways of seeing the
world, which were in conflict with each other.
2. '"Official culture, which he characterizes as ecclesiastical, sombre, excluding
profanity, and suppressing the body, driven by the bureaucracy of the Church
and the administration of Grace,"
o One of these worldviews was "official culture." Bakhtin describes it as
religious, serious, and restrictive—it avoided bad language, suppressed
physical desires, and was controlled by the Church, which had strict rules
about morality and behavior.
3. "is contrasted with what he calls the culture of the marketplace, the popular and
boisterous voice of the people."
o This official culture is the opposite of what Bakhtin calls the "culture of the
marketplace," which was the lively, loud, and free-spirited culture of
ordinary people.
4. "The marketplace is a totemic location for Bakhtin, and one that has certain
parallels with the rituals discussed by Cornford and the spontaneous expressions
of vitality explored by Langer."
o For Bakhtin, the marketplace is symbolically important—it represents a
space of freedom, humor, and everyday life. His ideas about the marketplace
are similar to Cornford's ideas about rituals and Langer’s ideas about vitality
(life force) expressed through comedy.
5. '"This territory', writes Bakhtin, was a peculiar second world within the official
medieval world order and was ruled by a special type of relationship."
o According to Bakhtin, the marketplace was like a second world that existed
within medieval society but operated by its own rules.
COMEDY
6. "Officially the palaces, churches, institutions, and private homes were
dominated by hierarchy and etiquette,"
o In formal settings like palaces, churches, government offices, and private
homes, society was controlled by strict rules about status, manners, and
respect.
7. "but in the marketplace a special kind of language was heard, almost a language
of its own, quite unlike the language of the Church, palace, courts, and
institutions."
o However, in the marketplace, people spoke in a different way—they used
humor, mockery, and free speech, unlike the serious and controlled language
used in churches, courts, and government offices.

This passage explains how Bakhtin saw medieval society as divided into two contrasting
cultures—one strict and religious (controlled by the Church), and the other lively and
humorous (found in public spaces like markets).

Here’s the line-by-line explanation of the passage in simple language, keeping the meaning
accurate:

The Language of the Marketplace

1. "The language of the marketplace is the idiom of the plebeian classes, the
expression of 'natural' feeling, coarse, unlettered, and unmediated by the
expectations of formality."
o The way people speak in the marketplace represents the lower social classes
(the common people).
o It is natural, rough, informal, and unpolished, without being shaped by
strict rules of politeness or proper speech.
2. "This is a vision of culture at ease with, and making fun of, graphic descriptions
of sexual activity and bodily functions,"
o In this culture, people are comfortable talking about taboo subjects, like sex
and bodily functions, in a humorous way.
3. "ridiculing officials and officialdom, and violating officially designated rules of
etiquette and decorum."
o People in the marketplace make fun of government officials and challenge
formal rules of politeness and behavior.
4. "The world of the marketplace operates according to what is essentially a comic
logic,"
o The way people behave and talk in the marketplace follows a kind of
humorous logic rather than strict, serious rules.
5. "one that runs parallel to official, serious, improving culture, laughing at it, and
sometimes violently humiliating it."
o This marketplace culture exists alongside the serious, formal culture of the
ruling class.
o It mocks, laughs at, and sometimes openly humiliates those in power.
COMEDY
Bakhtin’s Theory of Carnival

6. "Bakhtin's most important contribution to later analyses of comedy is his theory

of carnival."
o One of Bakhtin’s biggest ideas about comedy is his concept of "carnival."
7. "He argues that carnival is the vehicle of an authentic proletarian voice
answering the ascetic oppressions of the ruling classes."
o Carnival (a time of wild celebration) allows ordinary working-class people
to express themselves.
o It is a response to the strict and self-denying (ascetic) rules imposed by the
upper classes.
8. "Carnival, literally 'a putting away of meat', is the period immediately before
Lent,"
o The word "carnival" comes from a Latin phrase meaning "to stop eating
meat."
o It refers to a period of celebration before Lent, the Christian time of fasting
and self-control.
9. "the Christian phase of abstinence that takes place over forty days in February
and March and concludes on Easter Sunday."
o Lent lasts 40 days (from February to March) and ends on Easter Sunday.
o During Lent, Christians traditionally give up luxuries, including certain
foods like meat.
10. "Carnival takes place on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Lent begins."

 The last big celebration before Lent happens on Shrove Tuesday.

 It’s a day of feasting and partying before the period of self-restraint starts.

11. "In French-speaking countries, carnival is called 'Mardi Gras', or Fat Tuesday,"

 In places where people speak French, Carnival is called "Mardi Gras."

 "Mardi" means Tuesday, and "Gras" means fat, referring to eating rich foods
before Lent.

12. "helpfully signifying the sensual indulgence and misrule that comes before the
Lenten fast."

 Mardi Gras is all about enjoying food, drink, and fun before the serious period of
Lent.
 It’s also a time of "misrule," where normal rules of society are temporarily ignored
or reversed.

Carnival as Social Rebellion

COMEDY
13. "As a fixture of the medieval calendar, carnival was a special holiday that
permitted the temporary suspension of social rules and codes of conduct and
deference."

 During the Middle Ages, Carnival was an important annual festival.

 It allowed people to temporarily break social rules and act in ways that would
normally be forbidden.

14. "The Flemish artist Peter Bruegel's painting of a popular medieval and early
modern theme, The Battle of Carnival and Lent (1559),"

 The artist Peter Bruegel painted a famous artwork called "The Battle of Carnival
and Lent" in 1559.
 The painting shows a common theme from medieval and early modern times.

15. "presents Carnival as a gorged, corpulent, and self-indulgent figure, engaged in

an endless contest with gaunt Lenten piety."

 In the painting:
o Carnival is shown as a fat, greedy, and overindulgent figure.
o Lent is shown as thin, strict, and serious.
o The two figures are fighting against each other.

16. "In Bakhtin's work, this contest is more than an embodiment of the eternal
struggle between the flesh and the spirit,"

 According to Bakhtin, this isn’t just a simple battle between:

o Physical pleasure (flesh) → Represented by Carnival.
o Religious discipline (spirit) → Represented by Lent.

17. "but a manifestation of popular opposition to the dominant order and the
enactment of alternative regimes."

 Instead, this battle represents the way common people challenge the ruling class.
 Carnival becomes a way for ordinary people to express their resistance and
imagine a different kind of society.

Key Takeaways

 Marketplace culture was full of jokes, insults, and rebellious humor that
challenged the power of the ruling class.
 Carnival was a time of celebration and misrule, allowing ordinary people to
temporarily reject authority and social norms.
 The fight between Carnival (pleasure) and Lent (discipline) symbolized a deeper
conflict between the common people and the ruling elite.
COMEDY
1. "As opposed to the official feast, one might say that carnival celebrated
temporary liberation from the prevailing truth and from the established order,"
o Unlike official religious or state-sanctioned feasts, carnival was a time when
people could break free, at least temporarily, from the accepted beliefs and
rules of society.
2. "It marked the suspension of all hierarchical rank, privileges, norms and
prohibitions."
o During carnival, social hierarchies (such as class distinctions and authority
figures) were put on hold. The usual privileges and rules that governed
everyday life were temporarily lifted.
3. "Carnival was the true feast of time, the feast of becoming, change and renewal."
o Carnival was a festival that symbolized transformation, growth, and the
renewal of life. It represented a period where things could change rather than
stay fixed.
4. "It was hostile to all that was immortalized and completed."
o Carnival opposed anything that was seen as unchanging, absolute, or finished.
It thrived on fluidity and movement rather than fixed traditions.
5. "The inversions and suspensions permitted and legitimized by carnival represent
substantive challenges to authority,"
o The way carnival allowed social roles to be reversed (for example, peasants
mocking rulers) was not just playful—it was a real way of questioning and
challenging authority.
6. "therefore offering the possibility that comedy, invested with the spirit of festive
and carnival traditions, may also be an expression of popular discontent."
o Since comedy shares the same spirit as carnival, it can also serve as a way for
ordinary people to express their dissatisfaction with those in power.
7. "Some critics have seen in Bakhtin's work an almost utopian view of medieval
culture that is more akin to wish fulfilment than historical research."
o Some scholars think that Bakhtin’s ideas about carnival and medieval society
are too idealistic. They believe he imagined a version of the past that suited his
ideas rather than relying on strict historical evidence.
8. "Aaron Gurevich, for example, questions whether or not Bakhtin had not
'transposed some aspects of contemporary life in Stalinist Russia into the epoch
he was dealing with' (Gurevich, 1997:58)."
o Historian Aaron Gurevich wonders if Bakhtin was influenced by his own
experiences in Stalinist Russia and projected those ideas onto his study of
medieval culture, rather than giving an accurate historical account.

1. "Recent historicist and some poststructuralist critics have found Bakhtin's

theory of opposing cultures particularly productive."
o In recent times, scholars from historicist and poststructuralist schools of
thought have found Bakhtin’s idea of two conflicting cultures (official vs.
popular) very useful in their analyses.
2. "Such criticism is drawn to comedy via its thematization of misrule and the
visibility of characters from the lower social ranks."
o These scholars are especially interested in comedy because it often deals with
themes of social disorder and prominently features lower-class characters.
3. "Perhaps the most influential critical position of this kind is new historicism, a
methodology that came to prominence in the 1980s,"
COMEDY
o The most important school of thought that follows this approach is new
historicism, which became popular in the 1980s.
4. "and whose practice is best summed up by Steven Mullaney, who writes that,
'literary criticism is conceived not as an end in itself, but as a vehicle,"
o New historicists, like scholar Steven Mullaney, believe that literary criticism
(the study of literature) is not just about analyzing books for their own sake.
Instead, it is a tool for understanding broader social and historical issues.
5. "a means of gaining access to tensions and contradictions less clearly articulated
in other social forums but all the more powerful for their partial occlusion
(Mullaney, 1988: x)."
o Literature helps reveal hidden social conflicts and contradictions that might
not be openly discussed in society, but still have a significant influence.
6. "With this in mind, new historicism reads comedy as a potential site of social
disruption, using the comic as a medium for the message of dissent."
o New historicists view comedy as a space where social rebellion can happen.
Comedy can be a way for people to express their dissatisfaction with authority
and social structures.
7. "However, according to new historicist formulations of the configuration of state
power, it is a medium that is simultaneously monitored and controlled by the
authorities that it seeks to subvert."
o But new historicists also argue that while comedy challenges authority, it is
also watched and regulated by the very powers it tries to oppose.
8. "As Stephen Greenblatt writes of Shakespearean drama in his essay 'Invisible
Bullets': during the process of transgression and inversion,"
o Scholar Stephen Greenblatt, in his essay Invisible Bullets, explains that
Shakespeare’s plays often show characters breaking rules or flipping social
roles (a process called transgression and inversion).
9. "'authority is subjected to open, sustained and radical questioning before it is
reaffirmed, with ironic reservations, at the close' (Greenblatt, 1985:29)."
o In these plays, authority is openly and intensely questioned, but by the end,
power is usually restored—although sometimes with a hint of irony.
10. "Power absorbs the potential for change, permitting itself to be questioned for
the tactical and pragmatic purposes of seeming to appear open, before finally
reasserting itself once more:"
o Those in power allow themselves to be criticized temporarily. This makes it
seem like they are open to change, but in reality, they use this tactic to
maintain control and ultimately reinforce their authority.
11. "'Within this theatrical setting, there is a remarkable insistence upon the
paradoxes, ambiguities, and tensions of authority.'"
o In Shakespeare’s plays, there is a strong focus on the contradictions,
complexities, and struggles of power and authority.

1. "but this apparent production of subversion is... the very condition of power
(Greenblatt, 1985: 44-45)."
o What seems like rebellion or opposition to authority is actually something that
helps power maintain itself.
2. "Inversion and misrule, then, exist within a matrix of 'licensed transgression',
and are expedient outlets for reckless behaviour that enable the continuance of
the social order."
COMEDY
o Disorder and the reversal of normal rules (like in festivals or comedy) happen
in a controlled way, allowed by those in power. These moments provide a safe
way for people to express wild behavior, which paradoxically helps keep the
overall social system stable.
3. "As Olivia remarks of Feste, the representative of festival in Twelfth Night,
'There is no slander/in an allowed fool' (Shakespeare, 1989:1.5.88-89)."
o In Twelfth Night, Olivia says that Feste, the fool, can say whatever he wants
without getting in trouble because he is a "licensed" fool—his jokes and
criticisms are officially permitted.
4. "Greenblatt assesses the potential of comedy to cause social upset in the
following terms:"
o Greenblatt examines whether comedy can actually disrupt society or if it is
ultimately controlled by those in power.
5. "It is precisely because of the English form of absolutist theatricality that
Shakespeare's drama, written for a theatre subject to state censorship, can be so
relentlessly subversive:"
o Shakespeare’s plays could challenge authority so much because they were
performed in a system where theater was tightly controlled by the government.
This control created a space where radical ideas could be expressed but also
contained.
6. "the form itself, as a primary expression of Renaissance power, helps to contain
the radical doubts it continually evokes."
o The very structure of Shakespearean theater, which was shaped by the power
of the ruling elite, ensured that any rebellious ideas presented in plays were
ultimately kept under control.

1. "An absolutist monarchical message is effectively reinforced and validated

through the dramatization of objections and subversions of it."
o The idea of absolute monarchy (where the king has complete power) is
strengthened by showing people rebelling against it in plays, only for those
rebels to be proven wrong or defeated.
2. "Passages which are seemingly transgressive or dissenting are permitted on
account of their ultimate defeat and containment within the form."
o Scenes that appear rebellious or critical of authority are allowed in plays
because, in the end, they are shown to be powerless or mistaken.
3. "Any potential for offence must have been countered by the message of
monarchical status quo, otherwise, Greenblatt argues, the Master of the Revels,
the official dramatic censor, would have erased them and punished their
author."
o Greenblatt believes that if a play truly threatened the king’s authority, the
government’s censor (the Master of the Revels) would have removed those
parts and punished the playwright.
4. "How convincing, however, is this concept of the 'big brother' state that permits
objection only that it might enforce itself at a much more insidious level?"
o But how believable is this idea that the government allowed criticism just to
make its control even stronger?
5. "Certainly, comedy was subject to censorship in the early modern period."
o It is true that comedic plays were sometimes censored during the 16th and
17th centuries.
COMEDY
6. "We know that the Henry IV plays had been modified by such an intervention,
as the character of Sir John Oldcastle, a Lollard martyr and member of the
powerful Cobham family, had to be renamed Sir John Falstaff to appease his
offended descendants."
o One example of censorship is in Shakespeare’s Henry IV plays, where a
character originally named Sir John Oldcastle (who was a historical figure and
religious reformer) had to be renamed Falstaff because Oldcastle’s family did
not like how he was portrayed.
7. "Ben Jonson, along with his collaborators, was imprisoned in 1597 and the
theatres made to submit to an enforced closure due to the outrage caused by
their satirical play The Isle of Dogs, now lost."
o Another example is Ben Jonson, who was jailed in 1597, and theaters were
shut down because his play The Isle of Dogs offended the authorities. The play
has not survived.
8. "But the question is whether or not the form invariably renders any potentially
political content safe."
o However, the key question is whether the structure of plays always makes any
political message harmless.
9. "As Janet Clare states in her study of censorship on the early modern stage, the
Master of the Revels could be both inconsistent and arbitrary, which presumably
allowed some satire through unaltered (Clare, 1990:122)."
o Scholar Janet Clare points out that censorship was not always strict or
predictable. Sometimes, political jokes or criticisms slipped through without
being removed.
10. "Greenblatt's absolutist model, however, suggests that power has comprehensive
coverage, is co-ordinated and efficient at every level, and immune to mistakes
and oversights."

 Greenblatt’s theory assumes that those in power controlled everything perfectly,

without errors or gaps, which may not be entirely true.

1. "Peter Stallybrass and Allon White's The Politics and Poetics of Transgression
(1986) offers an alternative view."
o Peter Stallybrass and Allon White’s book The Politics and Poetics of
Transgression (published in 1986) presents a different perspective from
previous interpretations.
2. "This is a radical materialist reading of Bakhtin that can be said to have rescued
some of his ideas from the romanticization of the marketplace and reformulated
them as a more credible political force in which the marginal is understood to be
genuinely creative and disruptive."
o Their approach, based on radical materialism (a theory that emphasizes real-
world economic and social conditions), revises Bakhtin’s ideas. They argue
that Bakhtin’s view of the marketplace as a place of freedom was too
idealistic, and instead, they see it as a real political force where marginalized
groups can be truly creative and disruptive.
3. "Stallybrass and White see carnival and comic forms addressing 'the social
classifications of values, distinction and judgements which underpin practical
reason'..."
COMEDY
o Stallybrass and White believe that carnival and comedy challenge the ways
society categorizes and values people, as well as the rules that govern practical
decision-making.
4. "...where carnival 'systematically inverts the relations of subject and object,
agent and instrument, husband and wife, old and young, animal and human,
master and slave' (Stallybrass and White, 1986:56)."
o They argue that carnival turns traditional roles upside down. For example, it
reverses power dynamics between master and servant, man and woman, young
and old, and even humans and animals.
5. "These upheavals reformulate, for a temporary period at least, socially
sanctioned power relationships, bringing the margin to the centre, making it
visible and giving it voice."
o During carnival, these shifts in power temporarily change society’s usual
hierarchies, allowing marginalized people and ideas to become more
noticeable and influential.
6. "This is not to say that carnival is suddenly a politically progressive force,
however, as, 'although it re-orders the terms of the binary pair, it cannot alter
the terms themselves'..."
o However, this does not mean carnival is a revolutionary political force. Even
though it flips social roles, it does not actually change the deeper structures of
society.
7. "...as inversion of the terms of normal social operation is not the same as
redefining them (Stallybrass and White, 1986:56)."
o Simply swapping roles (e.g., the servant becoming the master for a day) does
not mean that the system itself is changed or redefined.
8. "The carnivalesque is not then equipped to topple the dominant order, but
neither is the dominant order able to silence the carnivalesque..."
o Carnival does not have the power to overthrow the existing social system, but
at the same time, those in power cannot completely suppress the energy and
influence of carnival.
9. "Stallybrass and White imagine both terms engaged in a mutually dependent but
antagonistic relationship, in which each contains an element of its other that it
uses to define itself."
o They argue that authority and rebellion (order and carnival) depend on each
other, even though they are opposites. Each needs the other in order to exist.
10. "'A recurrent pattern emerges', they write, 'the "top" attempts to reject and
eliminate the "bottom" for reasons of prestige and status..."

 This pattern repeats throughout history: those in power (the "top") try to distance
themselves from lower social classes (the "bottom") to maintain their high status.

11. "...only to discover, not only that it is in some way frequently dependent upon
that low-Other..."

 However, the powerful often realize that they actually rely on the very people and
things they try to reject.

12. "...but also that the top includes that low symbolically, as a primarily eroticised
constituent of its own fantasy life."
COMEDY
 The ruling class not only depends on the lower classes in reality, but it also includes
them in its imagination, often in a romanticized or even eroticized way.

This passage argues that carnival challenges social norms temporarily but does not
permanently change them. However, it remains an important force because power and
rebellion are always linked together.

1. "Comic inversion not only makes visible those excluded from the hierarchy,
therefore, but also symbolically foregrounds the tensions and desires that are
elided parts of the identity of power itself..."
o When comedy flips traditional power structures (comic inversion), it does
more than just highlight those who are usually excluded from positions of
authority. It also brings attention to hidden tensions and unspoken desires that
are a part of power itself.
2. "...revealing power not to be the coherent and all-pervasive monolith of new
historicism, but constituted of contradictions and unacknowledged
dependencies."
o Instead of seeing power as a single, all-controlling force (as some new
historicist critics suggest), comedy shows that power is full of contradictions
and secretly depends on things it tries to suppress.
3. "A further challenge to the critical tendency to reduce dissent to collusion in
support of the absolutist tactics of the state appears in Michael Bristol's Carnival
and Theater (1985)."
o Michael Bristol’s book Carnival and Theater (published in 1985) challenges
the idea that all acts of rebellion (dissent) are just a way of secretly reinforcing
state power.
4. "Bristol takes issue with the new historicism's conception of power as 'always
singular, a unity and also a plenitude'..."
o Bristol disagrees with new historicist critics who see power as a single,
unified, and all-encompassing force.
5. "...as it means it would be 'necessary for festivals to be completely
unselfconscious occasions in which nothing was ever learned, and for the
participants to cooperate, year after year, in an oppressive routine contrary to
their interests' (Bristol, 1985:15, 27)."
o If power were truly absolute, as new historicism claims, then festivals like
carnival would have to be mindless, repetitive events where people never
learned anything and kept participating in a tradition that worked against their
own interests.
6. "Finding the containment model of power unsubtle and unrealistic, he invokes
the work of anthropologist Victor Turner to understand the relationship
between carnival and authority."
o Bristol thinks the idea that power always contains rebellion is too simplistic.
Instead, he turns to the ideas of anthropologist Victor Turner to explore how
carnival interacts with authority.
7. "Turner makes a distinction between types of festive activity that are 'liminal'
and those that are 'liminoid'."
o Turner divides festivals into two types: liminal (traditional and symbolic) and
liminoid (subversive and radical).
COMEDY
8. "'Liminal' phenomena are those carnival or festive activities that remain bound
by their archaic form to the extent that they are simply the residue of a
previously significant ritual or the repetition of an inversion that remains
entirely unanalysed by its participants."
o Liminal festivals are outdated traditions that no longer hold deep meaning for
those who participate in them. People take part without thinking about their
significance.
9. "An example of this might be the erection of a maypole or performance of a
morris dance in a modern town."
o A good example of a liminal activity is the maypole dance or morris
dancing—they used to have deeper meanings, but today, they are mostly just
traditional performances without political or social impact.
10. "'Liminoid' activities, however, are 'not merely reversive, they are often
subversive, representing radical critiques of the central structure and proposing
alternative models' (Bristol, 1985:38)."

 Liminoid activities don’t just reverse social roles for fun; they actively challenge
power, criticize authority, and suggest new ways of organizing society.

11. "Liminoid activities, then, contain the elements of genuine social commentary
and conflict, and can extend the definition of festivity to include theatrical
performances and riots."

 These liminoid events don’t just celebrate tradition—they offer real political and
social critiques. This means that things like theater performances or even riots can
also be considered forms of carnival.

12. "Rather than being contained by an authority that tacitly permits festive
outbursts..."

 Instead of believing that authority allows these celebrations as a way to control people
(as new historicists argue), Bristol suggests that some forms of carnival (especially
liminoid ones) may genuinely challenge and disrupt power.

Main Takeaways:

 Comedy and carnival don’t just reflect social order—they also expose the
contradictions within power itself.
 New historicists argue that power always controls rebellion, but Michael Bristol
challenges this view.
 He draws on Victor Turner’s idea that some festivals are liminal (just empty
traditions), while others are liminoid (truly radical and subversive).
 Real social criticism can emerge from liminoid activities, including theater and riots,
not just from playful role reversals.

Line-by-Line Explanation in Simple Language

1. "Popular festive form reminds the ruling elite that they may actually rule
relatively incompletely and ineffectively."
COMEDY
o Festivals and celebrations that come from the common people serve as a
reminder to those in power that their control is not absolute or flawless.
2. "Much of the conduct of everyday life, and many of the details of political and
economic practice, proceed quite independently of the wishes of the power
structure."
o Many aspects of daily life, including political and economic activities,
continue to function on their own, without direct control from those in power.
3. "Carnival is an heuristic instrument of considerable scope and flexibility."
o Carnival is a powerful tool for learning and discovery, and it can adapt to
different situations in meaningful ways.
4. "Though it is a festive and primarily symbolic activity, it has immediate
pragmatic aims..."
o Even though carnival is mainly a celebration and uses symbols, it also serves
practical and immediate purposes.
5. "Most immediately that of objectifying a collective determination to conserve the
authority of the community to set its own standards of behavior and social
discipline..."
o One key purpose of carnival is to express the shared will of the people to
maintain their own ability to decide what is acceptable behavior and how
society should be organized.
6. "...and to enforce those standards by appropriate means."
o Carnival also reinforces the idea that the community has the right to uphold
and enforce its own social rules.

Main Takeaways:

 Festivals and carnivals show that rulers do not have total control over society.
 Everyday life continues independently of political authority.
 Carnival is not just entertainment—it helps people reflect on and reinforce their own
social values.
 It allows communities to assert their right to set and maintain their own rules.

Line-by-Line Explanation in Simple Language

1. "Festival is not contained by authority, therefore, but rather overrides it in

certain circumstances by asserting local plebeian codes of conduct over the
representatives of officialdom."
o Festivals are not controlled by the authorities. Instead, in some cases, they take
precedence by enforcing the customs and traditions of ordinary people over
those of the ruling class.
2. "Social practices like the charivari, a cacophonous procession and serenade
undertaken by the inhabitants of a village or district for the purposes of deriding
and humiliating an unpopular marriage or person, are clearly used as a means of
regulating the life of the community outside of official legislation."
o Customs such as the charivari—a noisy parade meant to mock someone
unpopular, such as a disliked marriage—show how communities enforce their
own rules and norms without relying on official laws.
3. "The humiliation of Malvolio in Twelfth Night may serve as an illustration."
COMEDY
o A good example of this kind of public ridicule can be seen in Shakespeare’s
Twelfth Night, where a character named Malvolio is embarrassed by others.
4. "The gulling of Malvolio and the presentation of him as an extravagant lover
'crossgartered' is a festive castigation of the sour puritan steward, whose very
name means 'ill-will.'"
o Malvolio is tricked and made to look foolish when he dresses in a ridiculous
way, believing it will impress Olivia. This public humiliation acts as a festival-
like punishment for his strict, joyless attitude. His name, "Malvolio," even
means "ill-will," hinting at his negative personality.
5. "Sir Toby, Sir Andrew, Feste, and Maria ridicule Malvolio's pretensions to
marry the wealthy Olivia, and then continue to torment him until he is perceived
to be mad."
o The characters Sir Toby, Sir Andrew, Feste, and Maria mock Malvolio for
thinking he can marry Olivia, a rich woman. They continue their tricks until he
appears to have lost his sanity.
6. "Festivity therefore pursues authority, which is ridiculous because it is inflexible,
and forces it to adapt to the demands of the community."
o Celebrations and festivals challenge figures of authority, showing how rigid
and unyielding they are. This forces them to change in response to the needs
and expectations of the people.
7. "Comedy's perceived association with a kind of folk politics has therefore given
it legitimacy in modern academic discourse."
o Because comedy is linked to the idea of popular resistance and community
traditions, scholars now take it seriously in academic studies.
8. "Following Cornford's literary anthropology and reading it through Bakhtin's
concept of carnival, comedy becomes useful to academia as a literary
counterweight to strict regimes..."
o Using theories from Cornford (who studied literature through anthropology)
and Bakhtin (who wrote about carnival), comedy is seen as a way to balance
and challenge strict forms of government and control.
9. "...an expression of a communal life force that inverts the social order and offers
short-term liberation from authoritarian pressure."
o Comedy is understood as a way for people to temporarily turn the social order
upside down, giving them a brief escape from oppressive authority.
10. "By associating it so clearly with plebeian culture, however, modern critical
interest is guilty of retaining the elitist generic divisions that once denigrated
comedy..."
o However, by linking comedy so strongly to ordinary people, modern scholars
continue to reinforce the old idea that comedy is a lower form of art compared
to more "serious" works.
11. "...keeping it as the working-class cousin of aristocratic tragedy and other
'serious' forms."
o This maintains the traditional belief that comedy is less important than tragedy
or other "high" literary forms, making it seem like a lesser genre.

Main Takeaways:

 Festivals and comedy challenge authority by mocking its rigidity.

COMEDY
 Communities enforce their own social norms through public ridicule, outside of
official laws.
 The trick played on Malvolio in Twelfth Night is an example of this kind of festive
punishment.
 Comedy has gained academic respect because it represents the voice of ordinary
people against strict rule.
 However, by always linking comedy to common people, scholars risk keeping it in a
"lower" artistic category compared to tragedy.

Sure! Based on the explanations I've provided, here are some difficult and predictable fill-in-
the-blank questions that a professor might ask in an exam:

Challenging Fill-in-the-Blank Questions

1. Bakhtin contrasts "official culture" with the "culture of the _________," which
he sees as a space of popular expression and resistance.
(Answer: marketplace)
2. According to Bakhtin, carnival temporarily suspends all ________, privileges,
norms, and prohibitions, allowing for a momentary liberation from the
established order.
(Answer: hierarchical rank)
3. New historicism, a critical approach that emerged in the 1980s, sees comedy as a
potential site of _________, but also argues that it is monitored and controlled by
authority.
(Answer: social disruption)
4. Stephen Greenblatt's concept of "__________" suggests that even transgressive
elements in literature ultimately serve to reinforce authority by allowing
controlled dissent.
(Answer: licensed transgression)
5. In Twelfth Night, Malvolio is humiliated through the trickery of Sir Toby and
others, which represents a festive form of _________, making rigid authority
look ridiculous.
(Answer: castigation)
6. According to Stallybrass and White, carnival does not fundamentally change
social structures because while it inverts power relations, it does not __________
them.
(Answer: redefine)
7. Michael Bristol critiques new historicism's view of power as a "___________,"
meaning it sees authority as all-encompassing and singular, without room for
independent social actions.
(Answer: unity and plenitude)
8. Victor Turner distinguishes between "liminal" and "_________" festive
activities, where the latter actively critiques power structures rather than simply
repeating old traditions.
(Answer: liminoid)
COMEDY
9. Social practices like the __________, a noisy public shaming ritual, show how
communities regulate behavior outside of official legal structures.
(Answer: charivari)
10. Comedy, often associated with plebeian culture, has been seen as a
"counterweight" to strict political regimes, but some argue that this
classification reinforces the old belief that comedy is the ________ cousin of
tragedy.
(Answer: working-class)