Is comedy just for laughs? Does it have a serious purpose? Is humour time-bound? This course will take the long view of dramatic comedy, exploring ways in which it is catalysed by, and speaks to, its immediate contexts. The entertainment revolution offered by London's public playhouses will provide the starting place for a wide-ranging investigation of the forms of dramatic comedy that evolved from it. We will explore dramatic comedy's relationship with developing technologies of performance and with socio-political concerns such as state and individual authority, class, and gender. Topics may include the Greek origins of early modern stage comedy, slapstick and the influence of Commedia dell'arte, Shakespeare's pastoral and romantic comedy, political satire and city comedy, the first female English playwrights, the comedy of manners, and the origins of farce . In each instance you will learn to identify both common tricks and innovations that have constituted the evolution of this important but often over-looked cultural form.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. identify, discuss and write critically about formal and thematic continuities and developments in dramatic comedy;
2. examine, discuss and write critically about the relationship between dramatic comedy and its socio-political contexts;
3. understand influential theories of comedy and apply them in critical analysis of examples of dramatic comedy; and
4. collaborate in Practice-as-Research methods to investigate examples of dramatic comedy and to generate critical, interpretative insights.

Research-Led Teaching

Kate Flaherty has a strong research and publication record in the fields of Shakespeare and performance, Shakespeare and public culture, and theatre history focused on the actress in the 19th century. https://researchportalplus.anu.edu.au/en/persons/kate-flaherty/

Field Trips

In Week 2 we will visit the Classics Museum on the ground floor of the A D Hope building. Please contact Kate if you have questions about this or particular access requirements.

Required Resources

William Shakespeare, The Comedy of Errors

Ben Jonson, The Alchemist

William Shakespeare, As you Like It

Elizabeth Inchbald, Lovers' Vows

Aphra Behn, The City Heiress

All texts will be made available in digital editions in 'Readings' on Canvas. You may also find it helpful to borrow or buy a hard-copy. Recommended publishers: Bloomsbury New Mermaids series (affordable) or Bloomsbury Arden (excellent notes); Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, and Norton critical editions series (all excellent notes); Penguin (small and cheap).

Recommended Resources

Whether you are on campus or studying online, there are a variety of online platforms you will use to participate in your study program. These could include videos for lectures and other instruction, two-way video conferencing for interactive learning, email and other messaging tools for communication, interactive web apps for formative and collaborative activities, print and/or photo/scan for handwritten work and drawings, and home-based assessment.

ANU outlines recommended student system requirements to ensure you are able to participate fully in your learning. Other information is also available about the various Learning Platforms you may use.

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• Presentations will be given synchronous verbal feedback and written feedback
• Workshop journal essays will be given written feedback
• Participation will be given a mark
• Exams will be given a mark and no comments

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). Feedback can also be provided to Course Conveners and teachers via the Student Experience of Learning & Teaching (SELT) feedback program. SELT surveys are confidential and also provide the Colleges and ANU Executive with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement.

Other Information

Guide to written work

1. Format

• You must leave a margin of approximately 2cm on the left-hand side of each page.
• Your text should be double-spaced.
• Please number your pages

2. Style

QUOTATIONS:

• If they do not exceed three lines, quotations should appear in the text in inverted commas, “like this.”
• If quotations are longer, they should be set apart from the main text (skip a line), without inverted commas, indented and single-spaced.
• Quotations should fit with the syntax or flow of your sentence, or otherwise should be separately introduced (see examples below).
• Quotations of verse should retain capitalisation and indicate line breaks thus: ‘Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?/Thou art more lovely and more temperate’.
• Deletions from quotations should be indicated by three full stops (…), and your additions should be enclosed in square brackets [thus].
• All quotations should be followed by a page reference; for poems: section and/or line reference; for plays: page reference, or act, scene and line reference as appropriate.

Examples:

In Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, the Duchess insists that “Everything’s got a moral, if only you can find it” (95).

In Through the Looking Glass, Alice is indifferent to the transience of beauty:

What mattered it to her just then that the rushes had begun to fade, and to lose all their scent and beauty, from the very moment she had picked them? (215)

TITLES OF WORKS REFERRED TO:

a) Titles of books, plays and films, long poems, and periodicals should be italicized or underlined.

         book, play or film:   The Bell Jar; The Merchant of Venice; Clueless

         long poem:             Paradise Lost; The Waste Land

         periodical:              Film Quarterly

b) Titles of chapters, articles, essays, short stories and short poems in collections or periodicals should be put in “inverted commas”:

         chapter, article or essay:    “Down the Rabbit-Hole”; “Emma becomes Clueless”

         short story or short poem: “Bliss”; “London’s Summer Morning”

3. Citation of sources

You are welcome to use in-text citation or footnotes – simply ensure that whichever system you use is clear, consistent and provides sufficient information for the reader to find the source of the reference. See the library's help page for guidance: https://www.anu.edu.au/students/academic-skills/academic-integrity/referencing

MLA style is a good, straightforward and comprehensive style of referencing: https://www.anu.edu.au/students/academic-skills/academic-integrity/referencing/mla

All you have to do to acknowledge the sources of direct quotations is to include a Bibliography at the back of your essay, with the relevant publication details. When you incorporate a quotation from the text in your essay, cite the author’s name and the relevant page number(s) in brackets immediately following the second pair of inverted commas, or just the page number if the author is clear from the context. If your bibliography contains several works by the same author, identify your citation by author name and title or shortened title.

Examples of citation in text:

Henry Giroux argues that youth are often portrayed in Hollywood films as “dangerous, mindless, addicted to drugs or socially irresponsible” (284).

Chris Crawford argues that “The Sims does not come close to true interactive storytelling” (Crawford 2003, 261).

Example bibliography:

Crawford, Chris. “Interactive Storytelling.” The Video Game Theory Reader, edited by Mark J.P. Wolf and Bernard Perron, Routledge, 2003, pp. 259-74.

—. The Art of Computer Game Design. McGraw-Hill, 1984.

Giroux, Henry A. “Neoliberalism and the Disappearance of the Social in Ghost World.” Third Text, vol.17, no.2, 2003, pp. 151-161.

Note that not all items in your bibliography may be quoted in the text; however, you should list in the bibliography all sources that have influenced your thinking in writing the essay.

How to cite a book:

Last name, First name. Title. Publisher, year of publication.

Example:

McCloud, Scott. Understanding comics. Harper, 1994.

How to cite a chapter or article in a book:

Author Last name, First name. “Chapter/Article Title.” Book Title, edited by First Name Last name, Publisher, year of publication, pp. page numbers.

Example:

Crawford, Chris. “Interactive Storytelling.” The Video Game Theory Reader, edited by Mark J.P. Wolf and Bernard Perron, Routledge, 2003, pp. 259-74.

How to cite a journal article:

Last name, First name. “Article title.” Journal Title volume number, issue number, year of publication, pp. page numbers.

Example:

Giroux, Henry A. “Neoliberalism and the Disappearance of the Social in Ghost World.” Third Text vol.17, no.2, 2003, pp. 151-161.

How to cite a magazine/newspaper/journal article from an online source:

Author Last name, First name. “Article Title.” Publication Title or Name of Website. Day month year of publication/posting. Exact URL of content (not the main webpage).

Example:

Doane, Rex. “A Conversation with Terry Zwigoff and Daniel Clowes.” Salon.com. 27 July 2001. http://dir.salon.com/people/conv/2001/07/27/zwigoff_clowes/index.html?pn=1

How to cite a film:

Film Title. Dir. Director’s first name last name. Distributor or production company, year of release.

Example:

On Our Selection. Dir. Ken G. Hall. Cinesound, 1932.

How to cite a newspaper (or other publication) article with no author:

“Article title.” Title of newspaper. Date, edition (if required), pp. page number.

Example:

“Study Ties Self-Delusion to Successful Marriages.” New York Times 2 Jan. 1998, late ed., pp. A11.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	William Shakespeare, The Comedy of ErrorsWorkshopSeminar	For Assessment 2: Workshop journal essay, choose ONE: -submission date 1-submission date 2-exam
2	William Shakespeare, The Comedy of ErrorsWorkshopSeminar	Workshop presentations
3	Ben Jonson, The AlchemistWorkshopSeminar
4	Ben Jonson, The AlchemistWorkshopSeminar	Workshop presentations
5	William Shakespeare, As You Like ItWorkshopSeminar
6	William Shakespeare, As You Like ItWorkshopSeminar	Workshop presentationsWorkshop journal essay (submission date 1)Participation self-evaluation
7	Elizabeth Inchbald, Lover's VowsWorkshopSeminar
8	Elizabeth Inchbald, Lover's VowsWorkshopSeminar	Workshop presentations
9	Consultations week	1:1 consultations for Assessment 2: Workshop journal
10	Gender and Comedy: enter the woman playwrightWorkshop Seminar
11	Aphra Behn, The City HeiressWorkshop Seminar	Workshop presentations
12	Aphra Behn, The City HeiressWorkshop Seminar	Workshop presentationsParticipation self-evaluationWorkshop journal essay (submission date 2) orExam (in examinations period)

Tutorial Registration

ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Learning Outcomes
Workshop presentation (as director or dramaturg)	30 %	2,4
Workshop journal essay or Exam	50 %	1,2,3
Participation	20 %	1,2,4

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines , which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Integrity Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Extenuating Circumstances Application
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure
• Code of practice for teaching and learning

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the Academic Skills website. In rare cases where online submission using Turnitin software is not technically possible; or where not using Turnitin software has been justified by the Course Convener and approved by the Associate Dean (Education) on the basis of the teaching model being employed; students shall submit assessment online via ‘Canvas’ outside of Turnitin, or failing that in hard copy, or through a combination of submission methods as approved by the Associate Dean (Education). The submission method is detailed below.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Assessment Task 1

Workshop presentation (as director or dramaturg)

Length/duration: Dramaturg: 5-10-minute presentation + Dramaturg's note (300-500 words); Director: 15-20-minute staging exercise + edited script 

Value: 30%

Submission: via Canvas

Due: Tuesday 9AM on the week of your allocated workshop

See more assessment information on Canvas

Assessment Task 2

Workshop journal essay or Exam

Word limit: 2500 words

Value: 50%

Submission: via Canvas

Due: Week 6 (Submission date 1) OR Week 12 (Submission date 2)

Alternative: 2hr exam in examinations period

See more assessment information on Canvas.

Assessment Task 3

Participation

Value: 20%

Students will co-develop a personal marking rubric with the instructor.

Rubric includes:

• Preparation
• Quantity of attendance
• Quality of contribution
• Co-operation/Initiative

Assessment 2 Workshop journal essay, may also be used to corroborate your self-assessment.

Due: Self- and instructor-assessed at Week 6 and at Week 12.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of the ANU culture as a community of scholars. The University’s students are an integral part of that community. The academic integrity principle commits all students to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support, academic integrity, and to uphold this commitment by behaving honestly, responsibly and ethically, and with respect and fairness, in scholarly practice.

The University expects all staff and students to be familiar with the academic integrity principle, the Academic Integrity Rule 2021, the Policy: Student Academic Integrity and Procedure: Student Academic Integrity, and to uphold high standards of academic integrity to ensure the quality and value of our qualifications.

The Academic Integrity Rule 2021 is a legal document that the University uses to promote academic integrity, and manage breaches of the academic integrity principle. The Policy and Procedure support the Rule by outlining overarching principles, responsibilities and processes. The Academic Integrity Rule 2021 commences on 1 December 2021 and applies to courses commencing on or after that date, as well as to research conduct occurring on or after that date. Prior to this, the Academic Misconduct Rule 2015 applies.

 

The University commits to assisting all students to understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. All coursework students must complete the online Academic Integrity Module (Epigeum), and Higher Degree Research (HDR) students are required to complete research integrity training. The Academic Integrity website provides information about services available to assist students with their assignments, examinations and other learning activities, as well as understanding and upholding academic integrity.

Online Submission

You will be required to electronically sign a declaration as part of the submission of your assignment. Please keep a copy of the assignment for your records. Unless an exemption has been approved by the Associate Dean (Education) submission must be through Turnitin.

Hardcopy Submission

For some forms of assessment (hand written assignments, art works, laboratory notes, etc.) hard copy submission is appropriate when approved by the Associate Dean (Education). Hard copy submissions must utilise the Assignment Cover Sheet. Please keep a copy of tasks completed for your records.

Late Submission

Late submission of assessment tasks without an extension are penalised at the rate of 5% of the possible marks available per working day or part thereof. Late submission of assessment tasks is not accepted after 10 working days after the due date, or on or after the date specified in the course outline for the return of the assessment item. Late submission is not accepted for take-home examinations.

Referencing Requirements

The Academic Skills website has information to assist you with your writing and assessments. The website includes information about Academic Integrity including referencing requirements for different disciplines. There is also information on Plagiarism and different ways to use source material. Any use of artificial intelligence must be properly referenced. Failure to properly cite use of Generative AI will be considered a breach of academic integrity.

Returning Assignments

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• written comments
• verbal comments
• marked up rubric
• feedback to whole class, groups, individuals

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure. Extensions may be granted for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information.
In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service – including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy.
If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes.

Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Accessibility for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents all ANU students