Aspects of Comedy
Cla220, Comedy, Greece and Rome to Hollywood
Interactive Devices
--used by writers to establish a relationship with the audience--
| Asides | thinking out loud, but so that other characters on stage cannot hear what is said |
| Monologues | a speech delivered by a character alone or who believes himself to be alone on stage |
| Eavesdropping | one or more characters are aware of additional characters onstage, however these additional characters are not aware of the others prescence |
| Improvisation | despite the fact that the characters are acting based on a pre-written script, their actions appear unplanned |
| Parabasis | a break in the action in which the chorus addresses the audience |
| Chorus | a group of minor characters who react to the action of the main characters, much in the same way that the audience does |
| Allusions | references to other works and/or events of the time |
Works Examined
| Aristophanes' Birds | Charlie Chaplin |
| Menander's Old Cantankerous | |
| Plautus' Pseudolus | Alexander Mackendrick's Whiskey Galore! |
go to Conclusions for comparisons and constrasts between works
last updated September 25, 2001