--Shakespeare's Comedies

Wit, an’t be thy will, put me into good fooling! Those wits, that think they have thee, do very oft prove fools. And I, that am sure I lack thee, may pass for a wise man. For what says Quinapalus? ‘Better a witty fool, than a foolish wit.’”
Shakespeare, Twelfth Night



       The words of the iconic William Shakespeare have become ubiquitous in our culture. Many idioms that we might consider contemporary, such as “break the ice,” “the game is up,” and “the naked truth,” in fact originated in Shakespearean works. The more than three dozen plays he penned between 1589 and 1613 are broadly grouped into three categories: comedies, tragedies, and histories. All of these forms generally follow prescribed formats, developed upon the foundation of classical works. Shakespearean tragedies, like those of antiquity, usually feature a tragic hero whose trajectory begins with stability and descends into chaos and death. Conversely, his comedies follow the general pattern of the New Comedy of Menander, Terence, and Plautus in their progress of young lovers from confusion and disarray to ordered resolution and marriage.
       The five-act structure of Shakespeare’s comedies generally moves the story from exposition of the existing tension and conflict, to the rising action and progression of that tension or conflict, with it reaching a turning point at an impasse or climax, then moving toward resolution with the falling action, and a conclusion in which the tensions are resolved and order is established. These tensions and conflicts generally revolve around the theme of love, presenting at least one set (usually more) of lovers who face obstacles which prevent their union. These barriers may come in the form of blocking situations or characters, such as stern father figures, in opposition to the match. These impediments tend to form layers of complex and intertwining narratives, rich with plot twists and unexpected coincidences. A common device is mistaken identity brought about through twins, disguise, or gender switching. Shakespearean audiences gleaned comic delight from being “in” on the deception, which gained yet one more layer in the case of cross-dressing gender disguise, as female roles were played by male actors. Thus, a spectator would witness a boy acting as a female disguised as a man. In addition to mistaken identities, Shakespeare’s clever use of language often allows for mistaken meanings through puns, wordplay, double entendres, and witty metaphor.
Once Shakespeare’s young lovers persevere through the labyrinth of obstacles presented by these intricately comic situations and characters, they ultimately celebrate the triumph of order over chaos with at least one union in marriage and happy endings for (nearly) all. Like his often-overlooked contributions to our contemporary vernacular, Shakespeare’s comedies have left an indelible imprint on our present-day culture by helping to bridge the gap from ancient comic tropes to today’s romantic comedies.

Further Reading:

“Theories of Comedy” by David Galbraith, excerpted from The Cambridge Companion to Shakespearean Comedy, edited by Alexander Leggatt

“Exploring the Nature of Shakespearean Comedy” excerpted from The System of Shakespeare's Dramas by Denton Jaques Snider







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