An Essay on Comedy and the Uses of the Comic Spirit

Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, New Age, History, Fiction & Literature
Cover of the book An Essay on Comedy and the Uses of the Comic Spirit by George Meredith, Library of Alexandria
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: George Meredith ISBN: 9781465603579
Publisher: Library of Alexandria Publication: March 8, 2015
Imprint: Language: English
Author: George Meredith
ISBN: 9781465603579
Publisher: Library of Alexandria
Publication: March 8, 2015
Imprint:
Language: English
Good Comedies are such rare productions, that notwithstanding the wealth of our literature in the Comic element, it would not occupy us long to run over the English list. If they are brought to the test I shall propose, very reputable Comedies will be found unworthy of their station, like the ladies of Arthur’s Court when they were reduced to the ordeal of the mantle. There are plain reasons why the Comic poet is not a frequent apparition; and why the great Comic poet remains without a fellow. A society of cultivated men and women is required, wherein ideas are current and the perceptions quick, that he may be supplied with matter and an audience. The semi-barbarism of merely giddy communities, and feverish emotional periods, repel him; and also a state of marked social inequality of the sexes; nor can he whose business is to address the mind be understood where there is not a moderate degree of intellectual activity. Moreover, to touch and kindle the mind through laughter, demands more than sprightliness, a most subtle delicacy. That must be a natal gift in the Comic poet. The substance he deals with will show him a startling exhibition of the dyer’s hand, if he is without it. People are ready to surrender themselves to witty thumps on the back, breast, and sides; all except the head: and it is there that he aims. He must be subtle to penetrate. A corresponding acuteness must exist to welcome him. The necessity for the two conditions will explain how it is that we count him during centuries in the singular number.
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Good Comedies are such rare productions, that notwithstanding the wealth of our literature in the Comic element, it would not occupy us long to run over the English list. If they are brought to the test I shall propose, very reputable Comedies will be found unworthy of their station, like the ladies of Arthur’s Court when they were reduced to the ordeal of the mantle. There are plain reasons why the Comic poet is not a frequent apparition; and why the great Comic poet remains without a fellow. A society of cultivated men and women is required, wherein ideas are current and the perceptions quick, that he may be supplied with matter and an audience. The semi-barbarism of merely giddy communities, and feverish emotional periods, repel him; and also a state of marked social inequality of the sexes; nor can he whose business is to address the mind be understood where there is not a moderate degree of intellectual activity. Moreover, to touch and kindle the mind through laughter, demands more than sprightliness, a most subtle delicacy. That must be a natal gift in the Comic poet. The substance he deals with will show him a startling exhibition of the dyer’s hand, if he is without it. People are ready to surrender themselves to witty thumps on the back, breast, and sides; all except the head: and it is there that he aims. He must be subtle to penetrate. A corresponding acuteness must exist to welcome him. The necessity for the two conditions will explain how it is that we count him during centuries in the singular number.

More books from Library of Alexandria

Cover of the book A Voyage to Lethe by George Meredith
Cover of the book History of 'Billy the Kid' by George Meredith
Cover of the book The Christian Sabbath: Is It of Divine Origin? by George Meredith
Cover of the book The Insect by George Meredith
Cover of the book La Festa Dels Reis: Lo Que Vulgueu (Twelfth Night) by George Meredith
Cover of the book The Intriguers by George Meredith
Cover of the book The European Anarchy by George Meredith
Cover of the book Wagner's "Tristan Und Isolde"; An Essay on the Wagnerian Drama by George Meredith
Cover of the book A Tramp Abroad by George Meredith
Cover of the book Yang Chu's Garden of Pleasure by George Meredith
Cover of the book How to Write a Blackwood Article by George Meredith
Cover of the book Les Forestiers du Michigan by George Meredith
Cover of the book Dante: Six Sermons by George Meredith
Cover of the book Thirteen Years of a Busy Woman's Life by George Meredith
Cover of the book 1914 by George Meredith
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy