Farce Sem 3- Unit 1

 FARCE

The exaggerated form of comedy is said to be farce in which no attempt is made at portraying the loyalty of a person or his belief in real life. Its main aim is to just provoke hearty laughter. To create this hearty laughter it employs all the resources of absurd (unreasonable/ ridiculous) characters, situation and dialogue. It does not represent things just as they are but it uses live caricature (striking characteristic are employed to create comic effect) and it may sometimes contain any element of satire which nowadays is said to be purely accidental. Farce belongs to the realm of nonsense and the characters are said to be free from everyday cares and restrains. The leading spirits are actually utilized to elaborate deceptions and mockery/imitation. You will find the characters always flee from angry wives, husbands, creditors and likewise or sometimes in some fantastic difficulty they try to flee from law. The play tries to draw serious and respectable characters into the most undignified positions and often involve them is some kind of horseplay (rough play) for certain time, so there is usually a love affair to create or increase confusion in the play but at the end nobody is harmed.

                The name Farce comes from the Latin word meaning ‘to stuff’ the first form of farces is said to be simply extravagant as the comic interludes (intervening) are stuffed or inserted into the main play which is either done to relieve or to eke (expand) out its length. Example of such kind is Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream and Merry Wives of Windsor. It became a separate form of entertainment when it came into vogue (taste/fashion/style) towards the close of 17^th Century, so what happened at the end of 17^th century, the Duke of Buckingham he delighted the London city with ‘The Rehearsal’ (satirical play). But during 18^th century with the rise of Sentimental Comedy it declined to some extent but it recovered itself again with the anti-sentimental movement of Goldsmith and Sheridan. The popularity grew to such an extent where the theatre was not considered complete unless one short farce is involved in the play and even the most distinguished actors sometimes took part in such plays. During Victorian age few plays like ‘The Private Secretary’ by Charles Hautry and ‘Charlie’s Aunt’ by Brandon Thomas are still revived from time to time.

               On modern stage a good farce is certain to bring its author a fortune. Though it may not be a high form of dramatic art, farce demands unusual inventiveness and craftsmanship and it can still tempt a great playwright to use this form in writing their play for example in works of George Bernard Shaw Arms and the Man, You Never Can Tell and Androcles and the Lion, such plays can scarcely be distinguished (successful) from those characteristic of pure farce