1. Shakespeare’s comedies

2. “Comedy" a light-hearted play a happy ending
as opposed to tragedies and history plays

3. Fourteen Comedies 11 Histories/12 tragedies
All's Well That Ends Well
Midsummer Night's Dream
As You Like It
Much Ado about Nothing
Comedy of Errors
Taming of the Shrew
Love's Labour's Lost
Tempest
Measure for Measure
Twelfth Night
Merchant of Venice
Two Gentlemen of Verona
Merry Wives of Windsor
Winter's Tale

4. Elements of comedy Young lovers struggling to overcome obstacles
obstacles brought about by the elders in the play (parents or guardians)
causes tension/conflict
circumstances keep lovers apart, either literally or figuratively
must find their way back together in the end

5. Elements of comedy Mistaken Identity mixed-up twins clever disguises
gender switch (women masquerading as men)
creates misunderstandings and comical situations
Twelfth Night

6. Elements of comedy Clever plot twists
multiple plot lines cleverly intertwined
keep the audience guessing
always straightened out in a happy ending

7. Elements of comedy Stock characters the young couple the fool
the clever servant
the drunk
stock characters were instantly recognizable to Elizabethan audiences

8. Elements of comedy Happy endings Most often involves marriage
Love always wins out in the end