Abstract This paper analyzes three of the major characters in the Kingsley Amis novel, "LuckyJim". It discusses what social foibles are being satirized, examines what makes Amis funny, discusses what ways LuckyJim is still relevant at the beginning of the 21st century, and reveals in what ways it has become dated.
Abstract This paper begins by giving a brief bio of Amis and then describes how he became famous as a novelist through the creation of a humorous but highly critical look at British society, especially in the period following the end of World War II in 1945. It discusses his book "LuckyJim" in terms of how it fits in with this theme of criticizing society.
From the Paper "Kingsley Amis's 1953 novel Lucky Jim is a book meant to make us laugh at the absurdities of many of the people that we make while at the same time assuring us that there the small and downtrodden can come out ahead. In this novel, he tells a tale that we all want to hear, which is that sometimes the good guys win just because they are the good guys."
Abstract This paper examines how, although the film "Ace Ventura might" seem like a movie with a hyper goon, Jim Carrey, running around with animals while making odd noises, the laughs from audience comes from not only Carrey's physical ability to entertain them, but also from the societal notion of being entertained at someone else's cost. It shows how the comedy results from laughing at someone's misery because he is the one who has to suffer from it, not the ones witnessing the incident. It looks at how, although the film belongs to physical comedy category due to Carrey's ability to express his emotions through physical gestures and performances, it should be recognized that the laughs can be "generated" by the standard and notions that the society has imposed.
From the Paper "Although this scene can be funny in terms of showing Carrey's famous exaggerated physical performances?i.e. moving his entire body up and down while throwing up, excessive facial expression of his emotion ? the mini story that contributes to a laugh certainly is not so great; not to mention a sense of homophobic is evident in the film. Audience might laugh at Carrey's physical performance, because he seems to suffer from a great deal of stress and emotional pain while audiences have the luxury to laugh at his misery. However, it should be noted that the use of homophobic concept was not necessary in this scene."
Abstract A historiographical case study of "The Strange Career of Jim Crow" by C. Van Woodward. Racial segregation practices in the South. The book's thesis that Jim Crow laws in the South were the result of national notions of white supremacy, and not specifically tied to Southern mores and practices.
From the Paper The Strange Career of Jim Crow C Van Woodward's The Strange Career of Jim Crow essentially followsthe chronology of racial segregation practices in the southern UnitedStates from the time of slavery through the s Throughout thediscussion Woodward relies
Abstract This is a biography and analysis of the American artist Jim Dine. In this paper, the biography of Dine is presented in relation to specific paintings and styles that influenced Dine's artistic production during the 1960s and 1970s. The essay also discusses Dine's methods and tools for painting, and compares Dine's art with his personal life.
Abstract The paper comments that the play, "The Comedy of Errors" is much more than a simple comedy or farce as it is usually seen; it is rather a profound meditation on human life, and the way in which errors blind men and keep them from the truth. The paper concludes that Shakespeare's play is a profound meditation on the human condition as a progression from error, illusion and confusion, towards ultimate truth and enlightenment.
From the Paper "The passage thus contains a few key elements for the interpretation of the play: first of all, the words "transformation", "error", "deceit" and the phrase "earthy-gross conceit" all hint at the main theme of the play: the plane of the human life is seen as a farcical game, in which the mortals are generally erring and confusing the truth with illusion. The play is thus much more than a simple comedy or farce as it is usually seen; it is rather a profound meditation on human life, and the way in which errors blind men and keep them from the truth. Men are generally "smothered in errors", "feeble" and "weak", in the hands of the divine will."
Abstract This paper compares and contrasts Shakespeare's portrayal of connubial bliss in his comedies "Much Ado About Nothing," "Measure for Measure," and "Twelfth Night." The institution of marriage during Shakespeare's time is examined in detail, including how one decided when one should marry, and to whom, and contrasted to today's notion of marriage. Some of the topics examined include finances, a person's reputation, family involvement, love and honor.
From the Paper "However, despite the fact that in early modern England, ?Most people got married, and most people had children,? (McDonald 265), Beatrice and Benedick seem hell-bent against marriage. It is therefore probable that, while it wouldn?t strike modern audiences as particularly odd, Elizabethan theatergoers found both Beatrice and Benedick's adamancy against marriage a source of humor and eccentricity in social behavior. When Claudio makes light of his intention to marry Hero, Benedick's immediate reaction is, "Is"t come to this? In faith, hath not the world one man but he will wear his cap with suspicion? Shall I never see a bachelor of threescore again? Go to, I? faith, and thou wilt needs thrust thy neck into a yoke, wear print of it, and sigh away Sundays,? (Sundays were the day a man was expected to be with his wife), (Shakespeare, MAAN, I, i, 197-202). Likewise, the Prince, Don Pedro, says of Beatrice, ?She cannot endure to hear tell of a husband,? (Shakespeare, MAAN, II, i, 347-8)."
Tags: ado, bibliography, cited, comedy, format, homosexuality, love, marriage, measure, mla, money, much, night, shakespeare, twelfth, works
Abstract This paper is written about comedy found in Christopher Durang works. In an effort to explore these three thematic elements within this playwright's work, two of his plays will be looked at very thoroughly. Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All for You, a play first produced in 1979, will provide a look at these motifs in his early work; and Betty's Summer Vacation, a play that premiered in 1999, will balance this out with a look at his later work. However, examples from work throughout Mr. Durang's career will also be presented within the context of this paper.
Abstract This paper examines the role of women in Restoration comedy and what it expresses about the relations between men and women of the era and in modern society.
Abstract This paper argues that both tragedy and comedy are about the human condition versus the human being. The author uses Sophocles' "Oedipus, the King" and Chekhov's "The Bear" are used to support this position.
From the Paper "In drama, tragedy and comedy are often considered polar opposites. It is often suggested that tragedy is more about a human being while comedy pertains mostly to the human condition. In other words, the tragic character is specific while the comedic character ..."
Tags: tragedy, comedy, drama, Chekhov, Sophocles, character, fate, free will
Abstract The paper examines both the structure and poetic symbols in Dante's epic poem "The Divine Comedy." The paper explains how he utilizes both in expressing the poem's themes.
From the Paper "Dante's masterpiece, "The Divine Comedy" is an epic poem which traces man's quest to reach God and discover a true world order. Indeed as Dante travels through Hell, Purgatory and Heaven he undergoes a spiritual transformation as a result of his journey and finds answers to the moral questions that have nagged him. The poem functions as an allegory as it allows Dante to express both his political and religious views while teaching his readers a lesson in spiritual and moral matters."
Abstract This paper discusses the career of Jim Carrey, one of the highest profile actors in Hollywood and how he has been able to establish his powerful status in an industry where one has to defend his position against constant challenges and competitions. It analyzes how the main factor that has enabled him to achieve his accomplishments has been his unique ability to succeed in comedy films, especially physical comedy. It evaluates how Carrey's method of putting his rather extremely physical brand of humor into work made him a star in his first film appearance "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective". It analyzes some of his featured films to explain how he has been able to satisfy the very core value of comedy films, in short what makes his films funny and why.
From the Paper "Ever since his successful film debut, Carrey's name has been an epitome of Hollywood modern physical comedy. Nevertheless, it needs to be noted that there was another great figure of physical comedy before Jim Carrey; his name was Jerry Lewis. Jerry Lewis had been Hollywood's golden comedian who could generate laugh with use of his body and, without doubt, his unique capability to dominate the industry was tremendously successful. After Lewis? era Hollywood seemed to lack that figure who can carry on the field that Lewis had left behind; it had been looking for someone who is willing to and able to brighten up the future of physical comedy industry. Hollywood's call was answered when Jim Carrey was discovered; a Canadian actor who somewhat resembles Jerry Lewis with his goofiness and manic energy that he brings onto the film. In Personality Comedians as Genre by Wes D. Gehring, Carrey is described as Lewis? prot?g? who is believed to be another great example of modern physical comedian."
Tags: cinema, culture, expression, facial, film, hollywood
Abstract This paper looks at comedians from the silent era such as Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin, the early talkies such as Mae West and the Marx Brothers, as compared to actors such as Jim Carrey in "Dumb and Dumber" and Kevin Spacey in "American Beauty" and attempts to analyze why comedies from a long time ago may not be considered as funny by modern audiences.
From the Paper "In the past hundred years, the comedic motion picture industry has gone through a drastic change in the way movies are written, acted and structured. What began as silent black and white shorts has turned into colored films with sound, lasting up to three hours. While most of these changes came about with improved technology, changes in the way these films have been written have come about with a change in society as a whole. What people found to be funny and comedic in the past has dramatically changed from what people find funny today. Despite this, comedic critics today still consider works of Chaplin and Keaton and such to be masterpieces, even though the majority of "general" audiences today wouldn"t find them as funny as a Jim Carrey. Alas we come across the question of why people have been finding different things funny as the times go by, and the main answer to this is that society's idea of what is funny has changed. However, the critics" idea of "good comedy" has not changed, and thus critics still consider the older silent films masterpieces."
Abstract The first part of the paper deals with Charlie Chaplin, focusing on his movie, "City Lights", and his persona of "The Little Tramp". The second part compares Chaplin and Jim Carrey, and argues that Carrey does not have the comic genius of Chaplin.
From the Paper "Film critic Roger Ebert characterized Charlie Chaplin'sc haracter the Little Tramp as the most famous image on earth in the early ..."
Tags: Film, Charlie Chaplin, Jim Carrey, Comedy, City Lights
Abstract This paper uses "The Lucky Chance", a play by Aphra Behn, to extemporise on what theatre in the restoration period might have been like for the audiences that attended it. Drawing examples from the play it examines scenography and the lines themselves in order to draw conclusions about the nature of theatre at this time.
From the Paper "The play "The Lucky Chance" by Aphra Behn has many such clues, and the first to be looked at here is the use of song in the play. Songs intersperse the text at several points, including during Sir Feeble and Leticia's reception and during the scene between Gayman and his landlady. These songs affect the tempo of the scene and indeed the play as a whole, because as a rule they do little to further the plot. They act as more of a summation of the events preceding it, in much the same way as the chorus in Ancient Greek tragedy functions."
