The Rhetoric of Comic Characterization

FAIN: FB-10446-70

Robert Pierce
Oberlin College (Oberlin, OH 44074-1057)

Study of characterization in dramatic comedy, primarily from English comedy. ABSTRACT: Study of characterization in dramatic comedy. Material drawn primarily from English comedy and focuses on three topics; 1) the aims of comic characterization; 2) the materials out of which the dramatist constructs the characters; and 3) the manner in which he organized these materials. Basic problem with the analysis of comedy is the tendency either to dismiss comedy as fundamentally unserious or to justify it on grounds that ignore its distinctiviness by analyzing themes rather than the comic mode itself.