Short and sweet? Structuring Humor and Morality in American Sitcoms
Seinfeld (NBC, 1989-1998), perhaps the most popular sitcom of recent years, famously insisted it was a show about nothing, about the pettiest details of everyday life. Though Seinfeld remains most outspoken about its obsession with trivia, the series in fact simply exaggerated one of the founding pr...
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| Publicado no: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/angles, |
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| Autor principal: | |
| Formato: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Idioma: | Anglais |
| Publicado em: |
Angles
2020
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| Assuntos: | |
| Acesso em linha: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:angles_2096 |
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openedition |
| spelling |
openedition-oai:revues.org:angles_2096 https://doi.org/10.4000/angles.2096 urn:doi:10.4000/angles.2096 en https://journals.openedition.org/angles/2096 2020-07-16T02:00:00Z info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess article info:eu-repo/semantics/article urn:handle:20.500.13089/9n0t https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Short and sweet? Structuring Humor and Morality in American Sitcoms Angles Société des Anglicistes de l'Enseignement Supérieur info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/2274-2042 URI:https://journals.openedition.org/angles Wells-Lassagne, Shannon humour sitcom television comedy one-liners moral rhythm sitcom télévision comédie réplique morale rythme humor Seinfeld (NBC, 1989-1998), perhaps the most popular sitcom of recent years, famously insisted it was a show about nothing, about the pettiest details of everyday life. Though Seinfeld remains most outspoken about its obsession with trivia, the series in fact simply exaggerated one of the founding principles of the situation comedy: its humor is rooted in the mundane nature of the everyday. This focus on minutiae extends to the very nature of its humor; from The Honeymooners (CBS, 1955-1978) to Modern Family (ABC, 2009-present), show writers have relied on quick repartee and clever one-liners to keep the audience laughing. Interestingly, the rapid-fire nature of this fundamentally domestic comedy is in marked contrast to the very serious aspects of the sitcom, the morally motivated soliloquies that intend to teach characters a lesson. The disparity of bursts of humor and extended principled soliloquies constitute the crux of this paradoxical art form, whose unity stems from its relatability (whether it be in terms of inside jokes about the American Zeitgeist or the familiarity of its characters and setting). I would like to examine this structural dichotomy, both as it was established by classic sitcoms, and as it has been redefined and subverted by more contemporary versions. Seinfeld (NBC, 1989-1998), dont le sitcom éponyme est sans doute l’un des plus populaires de ces dernières décennies, avait l’habitude de dire que c’était une émission sur rien, sur les détails insignifiants de la vie quotidienne. Senfield se manifeste avant tout par cette obsession pour ce qui est futile, mais en réalité, cette série ne fait qu’exacerber l’un des principes fondateurs du comique de situation, et son humour est ancré dans la banalité du quotidien. On retrouve ces aspects dans l’humour de ces émissions, et depuis The Honeymooners (CBS, 1955-1978) jusqu’à Modern Family (ABC, 2009-présent), les scénaristes se sont appuyés sur le sens de la répartie pour faire rire les spectateurs. De fait, il existe un écart entre les répliques comiques débitées à toute allure et les aspects plus sérieux du sitcom, à savoir les soliloques à teneur morale qui ont pour objet de donner une leçon aux personnages. La disparité entre l’humour et les principes moraux des longs soliloques constitue le cœur de cette forme artistique paradoxale, dont l’unité provient de sa « relatabilité » (qu’il s’agisse de blagues de connivence sur le Zeitgeist américain ou de la connaissance des personnages et du contexte). Cet article analyse cette dichotomie structurelle, s’intéressant à la fois à la manière dont les sitcoms classiques l’ont établie et à la manière dont elle a été redéfinie et subvertie par ses avatars contemporains. |
| collection |
OpenEdition Journal |
| language |
Anglais |
| format |
Article ou chapitre numérique |
| building |
0/Bibliothèque numérique/ 1/Bibliothèque numérique/OpenEdition Journals/ |
| topic |
humour sitcom television comedy one-liners moral rhythm sitcom télévision comédie réplique morale rythme humor |
| spellingShingle |
humour sitcom television comedy one-liners moral rhythm sitcom télévision comédie réplique morale rythme humor Wells-Lassagne, Shannon Short and sweet? Structuring Humor and Morality in American Sitcoms |
| description |
Seinfeld (NBC, 1989-1998), perhaps the most popular sitcom of recent years, famously insisted it was a show about nothing, about the pettiest details of everyday life. Though Seinfeld remains most outspoken about its obsession with trivia, the series in fact simply exaggerated one of the founding principles of the situation comedy: its humor is rooted in the mundane nature of the everyday. This focus on minutiae extends to the very nature of its humor; from The Honeymooners (CBS, 1955-1978) to Modern Family (ABC, 2009-present), show writers have relied on quick repartee and clever one-liners to keep the audience laughing. Interestingly, the rapid-fire nature of this fundamentally domestic comedy is in marked contrast to the very serious aspects of the sitcom, the morally motivated soliloquies that intend to teach characters a lesson. The disparity of bursts of humor and extended principled soliloquies constitute the crux of this paradoxical art form, whose unity stems from its relatability (whether it be in terms of inside jokes about the American Zeitgeist or the familiarity of its characters and setting). I would like to examine this structural dichotomy, both as it was established by classic sitcoms, and as it has been redefined and subverted by more contemporary versions. |
| author |
Wells-Lassagne, Shannon |
| author_facet |
Wells-Lassagne, Shannon |
| author_sort |
Wells-Lassagne, Shannon |
| title |
Short and sweet? Structuring Humor and Morality in American Sitcoms |
| title_short |
Short and sweet? Structuring Humor and Morality in American Sitcoms |
| title_full |
Short and sweet? Structuring Humor and Morality in American Sitcoms |
| title_fullStr |
Short and sweet? Structuring Humor and Morality in American Sitcoms |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Short and sweet? Structuring Humor and Morality in American Sitcoms |
| title_sort |
short and sweet? structuring humor and morality in american sitcoms |
| publisher |
Angles |
| publishDate |
2020 |
| container_title |
URI:https://journals.openedition.org/angles |
| url |
https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://doi.org/10.4000/angles.2096 https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://journals.openedition.org/angles/2096 |
| _version_ |
1877293947366146048 |