“Throughout comedy the emphasis is on human limitations rather than on human greatness” (John Morreal Comedy Tragedy and Religion). To what extent does Jez Butterworth focus on human weakness and ineptitude in his play ‘Jerusalem’?
Jez Butterworth’s ‘Jerusalem’ creates a comic vision focusing on the ambiguities, turmoil and hypocrisies of the society presented on stage. Butterworth focuses on the characters’ degeneracies in which the form of humour tends to be the exposure of their unruly behaviour and their reluctance to conform to social norms. “The most basic difference between comedy and tragedy lies in its central characters, who are not heroes, and often, as with Shakespeare’s Falstaff, are anti-heroic” The key character Johnny
…show more content…
He seems to be mystified by his own outrageous nature- which more often than not render him helpless and lowly. It’s the teenagers who tell him how, when drunk, he has at various stages smashed his own TV during his party, and caused a “fracas” at his local pub. His reaction to all these stories is bewilderment “I’d never do that” and “that’s a mystery” which offer a complete lack of power and knowledge that he so clearly tries to maintain – and a slight bit of vulnerability on his part. Johnny’s weaknesses and ineptitude seem to be masked by wit and extensive stories but he is one of the main offenders for being affected by their own limitations – even if his are subtle. Therefore, through his characterisation of Rooster, Butterworth does emphasise and focus on Johnny’s limitations by either exploiting his vulnerability or using a community of opinions to degrade him.
On the other hand, Johnny’s greatness is also a focal point within the play. “Twenty years back, Johnny Byron was the Flintock fair” implies that he used to be the main source of entertainment- attaining an almost legendary status and some kind of mythical greatness. The rendition of his birth story “You get close and stare into those black eyes, watch out. Written there is old words that will shake you. Shake you down.” links to conversation with Dawn later on where after looking into his eyes does in fact start to shake. This makes us question just how powerful he actually is, does he have a hold
Jez Butterworth undeniably flaunts the conventions of comedy in Jerusalem to create a profound but amusing philosophical satire, observing and mocking modern society. Morally objectionable ideals present in everyday life are examined and ridiculed, inevitably leading to the development of morally objectionable characters and social groups. As a result, Johnny Byron doesn’t neatly fit the definitions of either a tragic hero or a comedic protagonist but instead has traits of the two. He is both an outrageously hedonistic Falstaffian character whist arousing pity and fear, able to question the motivation of other characters whilst himself being hubristic and unable to admit error. Despite his comedic attributes, Byron’s character undoubtedly lends itself more to the tragic arc as the audience witnesses his bloody downfall from relative grace, evoking both pity and disgust.
He has different sides of his personality. One of those sides is caring. Even though he is as tough as a nail he can be a caring person, especially to Johnny. “ ‘you get hardened in jail. I don’t want that to happen to you. Like it happened to me…,’ ” he cares about Johnny. He doesn’t want Johnny to turn into someone like Dallas. He wants
In the end, Johnny has self-worth and this helps him get over his abandonment. In conclusion, Johnny’s life is fulfilled because he is able to fight for his country, and he has trusted
Everyone has a courageous moment in their life, but Johnny has multiple moments where he shows a true act of courage. The first event that shows that Johnny is courageous is when he saved Ponyboy from the Socs. There has been this rivalry between the Socs and the Greasers (the rich and the poor) which has caused a lot of fights. When Johnny’s best friend Ponyboy and him were in the park they were jumped by Bob and his group of Socs. They were drowning Ponyboy in the fountain and Johnny decided to take a courageous action and stab Bob to save Ponyboy. If it was not for Johnny, Ponyboy would be dead. Johnny knew that stabbing Bob would get him in trouble with the police, but he took the chance. “ You really killed him, huh, Johnny ?...
Johnny is portrayed in the novel as fearful and scared because he has been attacked multiple times by the Socs, the Greasers rivals. He also has an abusive home life, described by Ponyboy as “if it hadn’t been for the gang, Johnny would never had known what love and affection are” (page 14) Johnny also shows this through his actions, by flinching at the sight of Bob after he was attacked, or his reaction to when he killed Bob, shocked at himself and pale. Johnny isn’t just seen as fearful though, as in the later chapters he is portrayed as
The play ‘The Merchant of Venice’ Shakespeare effectively engages the modern audience through the means of comedic conventions within themes and characters. Comedy conventions such as racial and cultural slurs don’t engage the audience as successfully as they did during the 16th century. Since then, our perceptions have changed because of the impacts of historic events. However, the use of double entendre and gender roles continue to amuse modern day audiences. The Merchant of Venice is classified as a problem play/comedy because it deals with contentious social issues between the characters on stage, who typically represent conflicting points of view within a realistic social context along with comedic conventions. Written by the illustrious William Shakespeare about a merchant of Venice who must default in a large loan provided by an abused Jewish moneylender. Shakespeare uses some of the fundamental aspects of society in conjunction with subtle comedic conventions in order to appeal to a modern audience.
This presents him from a living a normal life because he is focusing on the negative aspects of the miraculous moment he encounters; although it is tragic, Johnny tries to prevent God’s plan from happening to Owen. Later, he realizes that he could not and God is unstoppable. Canon Campbell points out to Johnny that he lives “in the past” and has a “head for history which has affected their relationship because Johnny was once “close to Canon Campbell,” but he is focusing more on the past and ignoring the present (203). This demonstrates that Johnny is retreating into his past memories which affect not only his relationship with others, but him as well.
In I Henry IV and II Henry IV, William Shakespeare brings together drama and comedy to create two of the most compelling history plays ever written. Many of Shakespeare's other works are nearly absolute in their adherence to either the comic or tragic traditions, but in the two Henry IV plays Shakespeare combines comedy and drama in ways that seem to bring a certain realism to his characters, and thus the plays. The present essay is an examination of the various and significant effects that Shakespeare's comedic scenes have on I Henry IV and II Henry IV. The Diversity of Society
Johnny's personality changed throughout the book. At the beginning of the book, Johnny was immature. He was too full of himself and did not think before he spoke. By the end of the book, he was more mature. He became more humble and less easily angered. In chapter one, Johnny was overly proud and arrogant. Then, in chapter two, his hand got burnt and he lost his pride.
Johnny had an abusive relationship with his parents. According to Ponyboy he says: “He would have run away…” (12). Johnny hasn’t had an easy life, his parents do not pay much attention to him and are verbally and physically abusive to him. Also, because of him being a Greaser he got beaten very badly by the Socs. In Johnny’s case he was used to being abused by his parents but after the Socs got a hold of him he saw that abuse is bad, and after almost being beaten to death he lived in fear every day. Johnny never hurts other people but when he sees others being mistreated he steps in. “I killed him”, he said slowly, “I killed that boy” (49). In this quote, Ponyboy is telling what Johnny told him after he killed Bob. Because of the Socs drowning Ponyboy, Johnny feels angry for what they were doing so he lets anger take over and he kills Bob. Later in the book, Johnny, Ponyboy, and Dally help save the kids from the church fire. Johnny gets hurt and has to go to the hospital. In this hospital Johnny mentions “It was worth saving those kids. Their lives are worth more than mine, they have more to live for” ( ). Johnny realizes that the best thing he could have done was save those children, even if it meant losing his life. Because of the violence that he faced at home and with the Socs he was ok with dying because he saved the children’s
A comedic work of literature is often just one that was meant as pure enjoyment for the reader. Other times, comedy is meant to shed light on a serious situation or instance the public refuses or is uncomfortable talking about in a non-comedic setting. However, the greatest type of comedy is one that makes the reader think, one that provokes “thoughtful laughter” from them. “The Importance of Being Earnest”, a satirical play written during Victorian Era Britain by Oscar Wilde, is such a piece literature. By poking fun at the time period in which his characters live in during one particular scene, as well as illustrating the unsubdued hilarity of a character during that scene, Wilde is able to elicit thoughtful laughter from his audience, ultimately showing them that life is far too serious and needs to be taken more lightly.
There are many ways in which Jerusalem fits into the conventions of being a dramatic comedy. One way in which Butterworth does this is through the genre. Farce is used heavily in Jerusalem, with many exaggerated situations, such as all of Johnny 's eccentric stories, like how he was conceived, and when he met a giant. For example, when Johnny says “All Byram boys are
Analyse the passage (John the Savage in the hospital); discern presentation of satire and how it is wrought.
William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice is a perplexing story of dark humor, race, religion, identity, love, and justice. Generally, most people understand The Merchant of Venice as a comedy about a bitter and outcasted Jewish moneylender named Shylock who seeks revenge against a Christian merchant who has failed to pay his loan back. However, there are many different perspectives on whether The Merchant of Venice is a comedy or a tragedy depending on one’s views on the difference between race and religion. If one views the story as a comedy, it is a dark comedy full of many problems, especially the controversial subject matter of anti-Semitic attitudes of its Christian characters. If one views it as a tragedy, it is a tragedy that concludes with majority of its characters in a “happy ending”—that is if one agrees that Jessica’s decision of love over betraying her father and giving up her Jewish identity is indeed a happy ending.
William Shakespeare’s comedy The Merchant of Venice tells the story of Antonio, a merchant, who borrows money from Shylock a Jewish moneylender to help his friend, Bassanio, marry a woman. The play highlights the tension between Jews and Christians in society through the interactions between Shylock and the Christians. In contrast, the play also highlights the positive aspects of both religions. The main point of The Merchant of Venice is to critique society’s treatment of religion.