The function of comic relief in stage adaptations of Mary Shelley’s "Frankenstein"

Contents

1. Introduction

2. Comic relief in stage adaptations of Frankenstein
2.1. A brief definition of comic relief
2.2. Primary works and their way of adapting Frankenstein
2.2.1 Peake and Presumption; or, The Fate of Frankenstein
2.2.2 Whale and The bride of Frankenstein
2.3. Comic relief in Frankenstein adaptations
2.3.1 Comic relief in “ Presumption”
2.3.2 Comic relief in “ The bride of Frankenstein”
2.4. Comparison of “ Presumption” and “The bride of Frankenstein”

3. Conclusion

4. Works Cited

1. Introduction

Have you been to the cinema within the last months? If you have, you might also have noticed, that there are many films offered that one might have seen previously in a varied form: Robin Hood, Spider-Man’s origins, the very new Baywatch and what not. One might call them re-make, another one may name them an adaptation. But where is the difference? According to Linda Hutcheon, an adaptation can be described as

“an acknowledged transposition of a recognizable other work or works, a creative and (…) interpretive act of appropriation/salvaging or an extended intertextual engagement with the adapted work” (Hutcheon 8).

As a result, a clear distinction has to be made between these two forms.

Anyway, the concept of adapting books, respectively films, plays, stories or other works is nothing new, as history shows: Back then, roughly 200 years ago, Mary Shelley published a novel about doctor Frankenstein – a young Swiss scientist – who successfully revived a creature being stitched together out of body parts. Based on her novel, several adaptations have originated out of it as for instance Richard Brinsely Peake’s play “ Presumption; or, the Fate of Frankenstein” from 1823 or James Whale’s film “The bride of Frankenstein” from 1935. Their way of interpreting Shelley’s work is unique – besides, almost each adaptation transposing the plot of Frankenstein contains unique literary elements. Moreover, some adaptions that were intended to be presented on stage (like the ones mentioned above) work with certain rhetorical devices such as comic relief.

Based on the thesis, that the mentioned works of Whale and Peake use comic relief in various ways and differ amongst each other, the following paper attempts to investigate in which way, respectively to what extent “ Presumption” and “ The bride of Frankenstein ” adapt Shelley’s novel whereby the emphasis will be on the incidence of comic relief and the impact of using such a rhetorical device. In order to properly use and work with it, there will be a definition of comic relief at the beginning of this paper, followed by a short plot analysis and the audience’s perception, including a comparison of both works and their considerable reviews respectively. This paper will conclude with an evaluation as well as a summary of the results.

2. Comic relief in stage adaptations of Frankenstein

Since this paper intends to investigate the given adaptations with an emphasis on the function of comic relief, there will be a definition of it now:

2.1. A brief definition of comic relief

According to English literature lexica, comic relief can be defined as “a humorous scene, incident or speech in the course of a serious fiction or drama” (Harmon 99) and also, as “a comic, diverting element in a serious literary work, especially in a play” (Scott 59). Also, comic relief is defined as a rhetorical device, “which relieves the tension and (…) heightens the significance of [a] tragic scene” (Scott 59) and “to heighten the seriousness of the [entire] story” (Harmon 99).

Additionally, “The original sense, related to ‘elevate’, implies any sort of contrast (…) [whereas] The later sense of ‘easing’ may not always apply to comic relief, because it can have the nearly immediate effect of deepening tragic pain with scarcely a moment’s relaxation” (Holman 99).

As a result, these lexicon excerpts describe comic relief as a significant mean of tension release as well as an element which does not impair the seriousness of a literary work. It has a certain function and furthermore, varies in its meaning over time.

2.2. Primary works and their way of adapting Frankenstein

2.2.1 Peake and Presumption; or, The Fate of Frankenstein

Looking back at the achievements of Richard Brinsley Peake one can definitely call him a “popular playwright of the London theatres in the first half of the nineteenth century” (Bochinski, “ Richard Brinsley Peake ”). He published

“more than forty dramatic works – including musical farces, comedies, extravaganzas, and Gothic melodramas – that entertained audiences with humour, sentimentality, and special effects. [Furthermore, he might be] (…) best known for creating the first dramatic adaptation of (…) Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein (…) in 1823” (Bochinski).

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