"Comedy is a genre of dramatic performance having a light or humorous tone that depicts amusing incidents and in which the characters ultimately triumph over adversity."
A genre of literature that seeks to entertain and amuse through humor and wit, often involving farcical situations and characters.
Satire: A type of comedy that mocks or exposes the flaws of society, individuals or institutions through ridicule, irony, sarcasm or exaggeration.
Parody: A type of comedy that imitates or spoofs another work, event or person in a humorous way.
Irony: A rhetorical device or figure of speech where the intended meaning is opposite of the literal meaning to create a humorous or sarcastic effect.
Sarcasm: A type of verbal irony that uses exaggerated praise or criticism to mock or ridicule something or someone.
Humor: A quality of writing or speech that is amusing, comical or entertaining and can be expressed through a variety of styles and techniques, including satire, parody, irony and sarcasm.
Slapstick: A type of comedy that relies on physical humor, often involving exaggerated or violent actions and situations.
Punchline: The final part of a humorous story, joke or quip that contains the funniest or most surprising element and is intended to provoke laughter or amusement.
Timing: The skillful use of pauses, gestures, facial expressions and vocal inflections to create comedic impact and rhythm in performance or writing.
Incongruity: A type of humor that results from the unexpected or illogical pairing of elements, ideas or situations that don't usually go together.
Exaggeration: A humor device used to magnify or amplify an event or character beyond reality in order to create comedic effect.
"For ancient Greeks and Romans, a comedy was a stage-play with a happy ending."
"In the Middle Ages, the term expanded to include narrative poems with happy endings and a lighter tone."
"In this sense, Dante used the term in the title of his poem, the Divine Comedy."
"The predominating characteristics are incongruity or contrast in the object, and shock or emotional seizure on the part of the subject."
"Thomas Hobbes speaks of laughter as a 'sudden glory.'"
"The phenomena connected with laughter and that which provokes it have been carefully investigated by psychologists."
"It has also been held that the feeling of superiority is an essential factor."
"Much comedy contains variations on the elements of surprise, incongruity, conflict, repetitiveness, and the effect of opposite expectations."
"Satire and political satire use ironic comedy used to portray persons or social institutions as ridiculous or corrupt, thus alienating their audience from the object of humor."
"Parody borrows the form of some popular genre, artwork, or text but uses certain ironic changes to critique that form from within."
"Screwball comedy derives its humor largely from bizarre, surprising (and improbable) situations or characters."
"Black comedy is defined by dark humor that makes light of so-called dark or evil elements in human nature."
"Similarly scatological humor, sexual humor, and race humor create comedy by violating social conventions or taboos in comedic ways."
"A comedy of manners typically takes as its subject a particular part of society (usually upper-class society) and uses humor to parody or satirize the behavior and mannerisms of its members."
"Romantic comedy is a popular genre that depicts burgeoning romance in humorous terms, and focuses on the foibles of those who are falling in love."
"but there are many recognized genres of comedy."
"Much comedy contains variations on the elements of surprise, incongruity, conflict, repetitiveness, and the effect of opposite expectations."
"The predominating characteristics are incongruity or contrast in the object, and shock or emotional seizure on the part of the subject."
"Modern investigators have paid much attention to the origin both of laughter and of smiling, as well as the development of the 'play instinct' and its emotional expression."