A Philosophy of Comedy on Stage and Screen

A Philosophy of Comedy on Stage and Screen PDF Author: Shaun May
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1472580451
Category : Drama
Languages : en
Pages : 139

Get Book Here

Book Description
As far as we know, only human beings have a sense of humour – although chimps might laugh when tickled, and dogs respond similarly in play, Seth McFarlane's fan-base is comprised exclusively of humans. Whilst animals and robots might feature as prominent characters in our favourite comic movies, shows and stand-up routines, we have no reason to suspect that their real-life brethren get the joke. Drawing on the philosophy of Martin Heidegger, Shaun May attempts to address this issue – suggesting that there is something distinctive about human beings which grounds our ability to make and comprehend jokes. Guiding the reader through a range of examples, including the films of Charlie Chaplin, the stand-up of Francesca Martinez, the TV show Family Guy and Samuel Beckett's Endgame, he demonstrates that in order to get the joke you have to 'be there'.

A Philosophy of Comedy on Stage and Screen

A Philosophy of Comedy on Stage and Screen PDF Author: Shaun May
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1472580451
Category : Drama
Languages : en
Pages : 139

Get Book Here

Book Description
As far as we know, only human beings have a sense of humour – although chimps might laugh when tickled, and dogs respond similarly in play, Seth McFarlane's fan-base is comprised exclusively of humans. Whilst animals and robots might feature as prominent characters in our favourite comic movies, shows and stand-up routines, we have no reason to suspect that their real-life brethren get the joke. Drawing on the philosophy of Martin Heidegger, Shaun May attempts to address this issue – suggesting that there is something distinctive about human beings which grounds our ability to make and comprehend jokes. Guiding the reader through a range of examples, including the films of Charlie Chaplin, the stand-up of Francesca Martinez, the TV show Family Guy and Samuel Beckett's Endgame, he demonstrates that in order to get the joke you have to 'be there'.

A Philosophy of Comedy on Stage and Screen

A Philosophy of Comedy on Stage and Screen PDF Author: Shaun May
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781472580474
Category : Comedy
Languages : en
Pages : 224

Get Book Here

Book Description
As far as we know, only human beings have a sense of humour - although chimps might laugh when tickled, and dogs respond similarly in play, Seth McFarlane's fan-base is comprised exclusively of humans. Whilst animals and robots might feature as prominent characters in our favourite comic movies, shows and stand-up routines, we have no reason to suspect that their real-life brethren get the joke. Drawing on the philosophy of Martin Heidegger, Shaun May attempts to address this issue - suggesting that there is something distinctive about human beings which grounds our ability to make and comprehend jokes.

Only a Joke Can Save Us

Only a Joke Can Save Us PDF Author: Todd McGowan
Publisher: Northwestern University Press
ISBN: 0810135825
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 326

Get Book Here

Book Description
Only a Joke Can Save Us presents an innovative and comprehensive theory of comedy. Using a wealth of examples from high and popular culture and with careful attention to the treatment of humor in philosophy, Todd McGowan locates the universal source of comedy in the interplay of the opposing concepts lack and excess. After reviewing the treatment of comedy in the work of philosophers as varied as Aristotle, G. W. F. Hegel, Sigmund Freud, Henri Bergson, and Alenka Zupancic, McGowan, working in a psychoanalytic framework, demonstrates that comedy results from the deployment of lack and excess, whether in contrast, juxtaposition, or interplay. Illustrating the power and flexibility of this framework with analyses of films ranging from Buster Keaton and Marx Brothers classics to Dr. Strangelove and Groundhog Day, McGowan shows how humor can reveal gaps in being and gaps in social order. Scholarly yet lively and readable, Only a Joke Can Save Us is a groundbreaking examination of the enigmatic yet endlessly fascinating experience of humor and comedy.

The Object of Comedy

The Object of Comedy PDF Author: Jamila M. H. Mascat
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3030277429
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 302

Get Book Here

Book Description
What is the object of comedy? What makes us laugh and why? Is comedy subversive, restorative or reparative? What is at stake politically, socially and metaphysically when it comes to comedic performances? This book investigates not only the object of comedy but also its objectives – both its deliberate goals and its unintended side effects. In researching the object of comedy, the contributions gathered here encounter comedy as a philosophical object: instead of approaching comedy as a genre, the book engages with it as a language, a medium, an artifice, a weapon, a puzzle or a trouble, a vocation and a repetition. Thus philosophy meets comedy at the intersection of various fields (e.g. psychoanalysis, film studies, cultural studies, and performance studies) –regions that comical practices and theories in fact already traverse.

The Art of Comedy

The Art of Comedy PDF Author: Paul Ryan
Publisher: Lone Eagle Publishing Company, LLC
ISBN: 9780823084678
Category : Acting
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
Dyin' out there? Learn how to act funny from a top Hollywood expert. Want to know a secret? Sssshhhh. Great comedy actors aren't born...they're made. Who makes them?Paul Ryan, that's who. NowRyan, the top comedy acting coach in Hollywood, shares his secrets inThe Art of Comedy, a step-by-step guide for turning actors into comedy actors. Packed with exercises,The Art of Comedyexplains exactly how to build a character, how to incorporate improvisation into a written scene, where to turn for comic inspiration, and how to increase your comedic imagination. Also included is a technical analysis of comedy greats from Milton Berle to Jerry Seinfeld. For anyone who wants to work in film, in television, or in community theater, here's the complete guide to acting funny. Written by Hollywood's top comedy acting coach Packed with practical step-by-step exercises Gives actors at every level an edge at comedy auditions

Thinking on Screen

Thinking on Screen PDF Author: Thomas E. Wartenberg
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135975884
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 205

Get Book Here

Book Description
Thinking on Screen: Film as Philosophy is an accessible and thought-provoking examination of the way films raise and explore complex philosophical ideas. Written in a clear and engaging style, Thomas Wartenberg examines films’ ability to discuss, and even criticize ideas that have intrigued and puzzled philosophers over the centuries such as the nature of personhood, the basis of morality, and epistemological skepticism. Beginning with a demonstration of how specific forms of philosophical discourse are presented cinematically, Wartenberg moves on to offer a systematic account of the ways in which specific films undertake the task of philosophy. Focusing on the films The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, Modern Times, The Matrix, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Third Man, The Flicker, and Empire, Wartenberg shows how these films express meaningful and pertinent philosophical ideas. This book is essential reading for students of philosophy with an interest in film, aesthetics, and film theory. It will also be of interest to film enthusiasts intrigued by the philosophical implications of film.

Truth in Comedy

Truth in Comedy PDF Author: Charna Halpern
Publisher: Meriwether Publishing
ISBN: 9781566080033
Category : Improvisation (Acting)
Languages : en
Pages : 164

Get Book Here

Book Description
The 'Harold', an innovative improvisational tool, helped many actors on the road to TV and film stardom, including George Wendt (Norm on Cheers). Now it is described fully in this new book for would-be actors and comics. The 'Harold' is a form of competitive improv involving 6 or 7 players. They take a theme suggestion from the audience and 'free associate' on the theme into a series of rapid-fire one-liners that build into totally unpredictable skits with hilarious results. The 'Harold' is a fun way to 'loosen up' and learn to think quickly, build continuity, develop characterisations and sharpen humour.

Comedy on Stage and Screen

Comedy on Stage and Screen PDF Author: Wieland Schwanebeck
Publisher: Narr Francke Attempto Verlag
ISBN: 3823395335
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 243

Get Book Here

Book Description
This book introduces readers to the genre of comedy, both on the stage and on the screen. It chronicles the history of comedy, starting with Ancient Greece, before summarising key chapters in Anglophone literary history, such as Shakespearean comedy, Restoration comedy, and Theatre of the Absurd. The book features an overview of key comic techniques (including slapstick, puns, and wit), as well as concise summaries of major theoretical debates (including the superiority theory and the Freudian account of laughter). The book works with many examples from the history of Anglophone comedy, including Oscar Wilde, Monty Python, and classic sitcoms. It addresses current research into cringe humour and the controversial topic of diversity in the field of comedy, and it connects classical tropes of comedy (like the fool or the marriage plot) to present-day examples. The book thus serves as an up-to-date study guide for everyone interested in comedy and its various subgenres.

A Psalm for the Wild-Built

A Psalm for the Wild-Built PDF Author: Becky Chambers
Publisher: Tordotcom
ISBN: 1250236223
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 102

Get Book Here

Book Description
Winner of the Hugo Award! In A Psalm for the Wild-Built, bestselling Becky Chambers's delightful new Monk and Robot series, gives us hope for the future. It's been centuries since the robots of Panga gained self-awareness and laid down their tools; centuries since they wandered, en masse, into the wilderness, never to be seen again; centuries since they faded into myth and urban legend. One day, the life of a tea monk is upended by the arrival of a robot, there to honor the old promise of checking in. The robot cannot go back until the question of "what do people need?" is answered. But the answer to that question depends on who you ask, and how. They're going to need to ask it a lot. Becky Chambers's new series asks: in a world where people have what they want, does having more matter? At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Creating Comedy Narratives for Stage and Screen

Creating Comedy Narratives for Stage and Screen PDF Author: Chris Head
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1350155772
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 184

Get Book Here

Book Description
This accessible and engaging text covering sketch, sitcom and comedy drama, alongside improvisation and stand-up, brings together a panoply of tools and techniques for creating short and long-form comedy narratives for live performance, TV and online. Referencing a broad range of comedy from both sides of the Atlantic, spanning several decades and including material on contemporary internet sketches, it offers all kinds of useful advice on creating comic narratives for stage and screen: using life experience as raw material; constructing comedy worlds; creating comic characters, their relationships and interactions; structuring sketches, scenes and routines; and developing and plotting stories. The book's interviewees, from the UK and the USA, feature stand-ups, sketch comics, improvisers and TV comedy producers, and include Steve Kaplan, Hollywood comedy guru and author of The Hidden Tools of Comedy, Will Hines teacher and improviser from the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre and Lucy Lumsden TV producer and former Controller of Comedy Commissioning for BBC. Written by “the ideal person to nurture new talent” (The Guardian), Creating Comedy Narratives for Stage & Screen includes material you won't find anywhere else and is a stimulating resource for comedy students and their teachers, with a range and a depth that will be appreciated by even the most eclectic and multi-hyphenated writers and performers.