Comedy Blog- Sydney Smith

Algernon: If it was my business, I wouldn't talk about it. (Begins to eat muffins.) It is very vulgar to talk about one's business. Only people like stockbrokers do that, and then merely at dinner parties.
Jack: How can you sit there, calmly eating muffins when we are in this horrible trouble, I can't make out. You seem to me to be perfectly heartless.
Algernon: Well, I can't eat muffins in an agitated manner. The butter would probably get on my cuffs. One should always eat muffins quite calmly. It is the only way to eat them.
Jack: I say it's perfectly heartless, your eating muffins at all, under the circumstances.
Algernon: When I am in trouble, eating is the only thing that consoles me. Indeed, when I am in really great trouble, as anyone who knows me intimately will tell you, I refuse everything except food and drink. At the present moment, I am eating muffins because I am unhappy. Besides, I am particularly fond of muffins. (Rising.)
Jack: (Rising.) Well that is no reason you should take them all in that greedy way. (Takes muffins from Algernon.)

-from "The Importance of Being Earnest" by Oscar Wilde (Act II)


Using an excessive amount of irony and a focus on trivial/ absurd situations, Wilde is able to effectively satirize the Victorian morals, etiquette, and and manners of the members of the upper class. In this passage, Wilde focuses on a trivial set of moral expectations and manners, as the conversation between Algernon and Jack centers around whether or not it is "appropriate" for Algernon to be eating muffins. Wilde makes the situation seem overly absurd, and the comedic elements of the conversation chastise the upper class's focus on such trivial details. I generally respond to Wilde's "high comedy" -- his use of cerebral humor such as puns and satire -- rather than his "low comedy."

Recently, some of my favorite comedy has come from YouTube -- particularly from political humorists such as Jon Stewart and John Oliver who present hilarious commentary on current events and important world issues. This feeds my love of "high comedy", I guess, because they tend to market their comedy towards an informed audience who understands their political and social references. I am a well-known lover of puns (as demonstrated by my "Heart of Darkness" Valentines), and they use lots of puns. Most of all, I appreciate their ability to spin news stories and current events into comedy, while still managing to inform me about important issues.

Here is one of my favorite John Oliver videos (I have many favorites, though!) It discusses an important issue: pharmaceutical companies marketing to doctors.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQZ2UeOTO3I