Farce - Examples and Definition of Farce

Definition of Farce
A farce is a literary genre and type of comedy that makes use of noticeably exaggerated and funny situations geared toward exciting the target market. Farce is also a subcategory of dramatic comedy, which isn't like different varieties of comedy because it best targets at making the target audience laugh. It makes use of elements like bodily humor, deliberate absurdity, bawdy jokes, and drunkenness just to make human beings laugh. We frequently see one‑dimensional characters in ludicrous conditions in farces.

Examples of Farce in Literature
Example #1: The Importance of Being Earnest (By Oscar Wilde)
Oscar Wilde’s novel, The Importance of Being Earnest, is certainly one of the quality verbal farces. Just like a typical farce that includes simple elements, which include mockery of the top class, disgraceful physical humor, absurdity, and fallacious identities, this novel also demonstrates these functions of a farce. The most absurd factor in story is the fact that Miss Prism commits a blunder by way of leaving her manuscript within the pram, and puts her baby into her handbag.

Example #2: The Taming of the Shrew (By William Shakespeare)
In Shakespeare’s play, The Taming of the Shrew, the farcical elements are manifested in terms of characters, plot, and mainly the writing style. The play incorporates stereotype characters that are generally farcical in nature, such as Katherine is an great example of the farcical character. Although Katherina (Kate) is a stereotype and a boisterous shrew, Shakespeare portrays her as an man or woman wanting sympathy, due to the fact Bianca is the fave baby of her father, Baptista.

Realizing that Baptista prefers her sister, Bianca, Kate says:

“What, will you not go through me? Nay, now I see
She is your treasure, she need to have a husband,
I ought to dance barefoot on her wedding day …”

As a ways because the plot is concerned, Shakespeare develops the plot to appear to be a situational comedy. Though the subplot is romantic, both the main plot and the subplot circulate round an concept of the favoring father, whom his daughter and her lover outwit. In terms of the writing style, Shakespeare has used three simple comical techniques to produce funny effects, inclusive of Kate’s statements, and her husband’s replies, which reveal verbal humor. All these 3 factors display this play as a farce.

Example #3: She Stoops to Conquer (Oliver Goldsmith)
Oliver Goldsmith’s play, She Stoops to Conquer, is another good example of farce or comedy of errors, as it consists of multiple misunderstandings. It makes use of comedy of manners, wherein the author ridicules the manners of a specific society – particularly the upper class.

She Stoops to Conquer includes numerous farcical elements, along with themes, human manners, or even the plot itself. In the play, two Londoners look for Mr. Hardcastle’s home. When they locate, they're deceived to believe that they have got reached in an inn, no longer home; therefore they behavior themselves consistent with the state of affairs.

One of the gentlemen, Marlow, pursues Kate Hardcastle. However, she pretends to be a maid until he exhibits his passionate emotions for her, and that he plans to elope with Kate. She, on the opposite hand, seems bawdy in her manners. As the gents do now not recognise the reality of the scenario, they behave rudely with different family members. All such misunderstandings create humor and give farcical touches to this play.

Example #4: Waiting for Godot (By Samuel Beckett)
We discover several farcical situations in Samuel Beckett’s play Waiting for Godot. However, most of those conditions have deeper meanings than simply their obvious meanings. For instance, we have a funny scenario in which Vladimir and Estragon put on and take off their hats. Though it's miles a farcical situation, the aim is to tell the audience that the sector of tramps has no extensive actions and place, except to do trivial things.

Perhaps the maximum hilarious farcical state of affairs occurs while the tramps take a look at the power of a string with a purpose to grasp themselves. The Estragon’s trousers fall down to his ankles whilst pulling the cord, and due to strain, the cord breaks.

Function of Farce
The simple reason of a farcical comedy is to evoke laughter. We typically discover farces in theater and films, and every so often in different literary works too. In reality, all of those forms integrate stereotyped characters and exaggeration to create humor. Although a farce may additionally appear most effective to be funny, they often incorporate deeper implications on account of using satirical factors. In terms of plots, farces are regularly incomprehensible; hence, the audiences aren't advocated to follow the plot as a way to keep away from turning into overwhelmed and confused. Moreover, farces also include fantastic coincidences, and generally mock weaknesses of people and human society.