Comedy in the Enlightenment is characterized by wit, satire, and humor, provoking both laughter and sympathetic tears. Comic expression in the period reflects continuities and engagements with the comedy of previous eras; it is also noted for new forms and preoccupations engendered by the cultural, philosophical, and political concerns of the time, including democratizing revolutions, increasing secularization, and growing emphasis on individualism.

This volume highlights comedy in England with reference to developments in Europe, France in particular. Discussions emphasize the period’s stage comedy and acknowledge, as well, comic expression in various forms of print media including the emerging literary form we now know as the novel. Contributions from scholars reflect a wide variety of interests in the field of eighteenth-century studies, and the inclusion of a generous number of illustrations throughout demonstrates that the period’s visual culture was also an important part of the Enlightenment comic landscape.

Each chapter takes a different theme as its focus: form, theory, praxis, identities, the body, politics and power, laughter and ethics. These eight different approaches to Enlightenment comedy add up to an extensive, synoptic coverage of the subject.

Table of contents

• List of Illustrations 
• Contributors 
• Editor’s Acknowledgments 
• Series Preface
• Introduction     1–26
• 1. Form  27–48
• 2. Theory          49–68
• 3. Praxis 69–92
• 4. Identities       93–118
• 5. The Body     119–142
• 6. Politics and Power  143–170
• 7. Laughter       171–196
• 8. Ethics 197–220
• References        227–242