Comedy’s Logic

Abstract

Comedy obeys a structure that is emotionally logical, and it is this logic that generates a catharsis: in every comedy, there is a correspondence between the possible success or failure of the protagonist’s intention and the audience’s wish or fear on his behalf. The successful achievement of his intention produces a catharsis of those two feelings in the audience, and that catharsis is the ultimate source of all comedic pleasure, just as a catharsis of terror and pity is the source of all tragic pleasure. In every comedy, finally, the protagonist embodies both the author’s will and the audience’s wish, and the purpose of their unacknowledged collaboration is to play a game that will end happily for both of them. Their will-to-play, their game-playing is the true spirit of all comedy, its festive spirit.