Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
English essay on humour
An analysis of humor
English essay on humour
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
In the historical fiction novel, Dead End in Norvelt, the author, Jack Gantos, uses a variety of forms of comedy to exemplify the undertakings of his character, Jack. Jack Gantos is an 11 year old boy living in the run-down town of Norvelt, Pennsylvania who finds himself working with the town’s medical examiner, Miss Volker. Throughout the story Jack and Miss Volker attempt to unravel the mystery of the sudden and abrupt deaths of a number of original Norvelters. Gantos narrates the anecdote in the most uplifting way possible by utilizing irony, dark humor, and the superiority theory in his writing as the story progresses.
Gantos portrays a majority of his characters in the story as foolish. The main character, Jack, is introduced to the
The inimitable novel “A Confederacy of Dunces” written by author John Kennedy Toole was not even published until after his suicide. The story in the pages of this novel reveals a hilarious, funny, sidesplitting, yet brilliantly crafted fictional masterpiece. The picaresque novel focuses on the life of the main character Ignatius J. Reilly. The character of Ignatius is a protagonist against the modern age. In his writing Toole saturates the narrative of the novel with an absurd sense of humor that stimulates both laughter and sympathy from readers. With his unique writing style Toole seamlessly combines, symbolism, sadness and humor in a literary
Throughout the whole essay, Mailer interspersed various stylistic devices ranging from diction to syntax in order to give the reader an overall melancholy mood to reflect how he felt that day when he witnessed Paret die. Since he had utilized these stylistic devices, he had engendered potency for his passage as a whole and he had reinforced the mood throughout the passage with efficacy. More importantly, from this passage, Mailer wanted the reader to remember the significance of Benny Paret and the fact that surprises lurk in every corner of life.
Updike, John. “A&P”. The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction. Eds. R.V. Cassill and Richard Bausch. Shorter Sixth Edition. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 2000. 864 - 869.
Suffering from the death of a close friend, the boy tries to ignore his feelings and jokes on his sister. His friend was a mental patient who threw himself off a building. Being really young and unable to cope with this tragedy, the boy jokes to his sister about the bridge collapsing. "The mention of the suicide and of the bridge collapsing set a depressing tone for the rest of the story" (Baker 170). Arguments about Raisinettes force the father to settle it by saying, "you will both spoil your lunch." As their day continues, their arguments become more serious and present concern for the father who is trying to understand his children better. In complete agreement with Justin Oeltzes’ paper, "A Sad Story," I also feel that this dark foreshadowing of time to come is an indication of the author’s direct intention to write a sad story.
Greenblatt, Stephen, and M. H. Abrams. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 9th ed. Vol. A. New York: W.W. Norton, 2012. Print
According to Aristotle, a tragic hero character can be defined to be of noble status, but not necessarily virtuous. There is some aspect of his personality that he has in great abundance but it is this that becomes his tragic flaw and leads to his ultimate demise. However, his tragic ending should not simply sadden the reader, but teach him or her a life lesson. In The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Jay Gatsby is the tragic hero who portrays the corruption of the American dream through his tragic flaw. His devastating death at the end of the novel portrays the dangers of centering one’s life on money and other materialistic things and warns the reader not to follow his foolish steps. Jay Gatsby is the epitome of a tragic hero; his greatest attribute of enterprise and ambition contributes to his ultimate demise but his tragic story inspires fear amongst the audience and showcases the dangers of allowing money to consume one’s life.
... immensity of its horror finally makes him drop the pretense of knowing detachment he has held for so long. As he drunkenly sobs, “What’s funny? What’s so goddamned funny? I don’t get it” (Ch. 2, 23) his lurking humanity becomes evident. The subtly of interplay between The Comedian’s persona, his humanity, and even his hypocrisy strongly support his status as a living person alongside Dr. Manhattan.
Edgar Allan Poe once said, “The boundaries which divide Life and Death are at best shadowy and vague. Who shall say where the one ends and the other begins?”(1). Death and its effects, as well as the mechanics of writing, are depicted in many of Atwood’s works, deeply influenced by her passion for Edgar Allan Poe’s works in literature. Death for Atwood in “Happy Endings” is not simply another macabre literary experiment. Atwood demonstrates that through death, beginnings and endings share a meaning that is one and the same and it resonates throughout the structure, narrative, reader interpretation, and overall tone of this piece of
In Chapter 2, the overall main idea that the author writes about is Gantos going on shore with Hamilton to practice his sailing before leaving to New York. He talks about the hard work of sailing a boat. He explains the frustration he goes through having to deal with Hamilton’s attitude. His daily reminders “the money. The money.”, helping him to cool down. They first head to Buck Island beach as his first sail which ended up in disaster, two days after they leave St. Croix. Gantos was full of excitement for his new adventure. He goes to the bookstore before he leaves to check out some books of sea to help deal with Hamilton. Their first arrival is to Little Dog Island were Gantos begins to load the hash on the boat. After loading the two thousand
In “Dinner Dandruff” Robert Fulghum has written each sentence to create a style that is humorous and melodramatic. By using humorous jokes or phrases to make his style show through it persuades the readers to continue reading and realize they are not the only ones that thinks of these ironic ideas. He also over exaggerates his opinion on the left over waste in the bottom of the drain to show that he is being melodramatic. Fulghum also demonstrates his type of style by his use of diction, syntax, and imagery.
Some may argue that the way Irving portrays faith and predestination through Owen is outlandish. The situations the characters find themselves in may seem unbelievable to life in the twenty-first century. However, it is valid to say that the “weirdly ridiculous yet realistic” (Booklist) scenes of the novel grab the readers’ attention and immerse them deeper into the friendship they’ve grown to love. For example, Owen, swaddled as the baby Jesus in the Wiggins Christmas pageant, is sure to leave readers smiling. Likewise, Owen’s heroic death with his best friend by his side pulls at the heart strings of the audience, leaving them in tears. The unconventional scenes of Irving’s masterpiece exemplifies the amazing bond of the characters and leaves the readers engaged in amusement and
An analysis of the article, "Girl Moved to Tears By 'Of Mice and Men' Cliff Notes" uses a satirical outlook on the laziness of people in today’s society. Through this article, the face value appears to be stating how compelling Cliff Notes can be, but through blatant satirical statements, irony, and humor, it shows how indolent humans are as a society. The use of irony in the article induces a shock-value from the audience in order to bring to attention the lethargic nature of people.
In “Cannibalism in the Cars,” Mark Twain utilizes short dialect, a mix between colloquial and courtroom style diction, and an unfitting casual tone throughout. Twain’s, “How to Tell Story,” provides further insight to how his methods induce a humorous effect.
Rather than produce the normal response of a ten-year-old girl who has just discovered a dead body by stepping in it such as scream or faint, she remains “unafraid” and bends down to release her foot. It is not until she sees the dead man’s “naked grin” that she becomes unnerved. Myop’s delayed response to the disturbing event emphasizes the grotesque element as well as her innocence. The man was dressed in overalls with buckles that had “turned green” which illustrated decay. His teeth had “crack[s]” and were “broken” suggesting that he had been beaten before dying. After looking, Myop notices a pretty flower that she would like to add to her collection. Once she picks it up, however, she notices the “rotted remains of a noose”. The man Myop found had been hung which explained why his head “lay beside him” rather than with his
The contrast between Volpone and the comical satire is immediately apparent. Gone are the static spokesman, the conveniently formulated ideal, and the easy dispensation of comic justice from a lofty vantagepoin...