Essay on romantic comedy
due at 6 pm, Monday, July 28

We have recently seen five movies that can be classified as romantic comedies: (in chronological order), Trouble in Paradise, Bringing Up Baby, The Palm Beach Story, Some Like It Hot, and Annie Hall.

Choose one of these three topics for an essay of approximately 1500 words (five double-spaced pages). Your essay should be comparative and analytical rather than merely retelling the story.


A. One of the most basic conventions of comedy is the happy ending. Traditionally, comedies end with marriage. Only one of our five comedies actually depicts a wedding ceremony, and it could be argued that none of them ends with a situation that necessarily predicts a happy marriage in the traditional sense. Discuss ambiguities of the ‘happy endings’ in at least three of the movies.

B. Northrop Frye’s theory points to the character of the senex—literally, ‘old man,’ usually the girl’s father—who represents social and sexual opposition to the coming together of the young couple. None of our five comedies has a literal senex, but all depict characters who, intentionally or not, hamper the coming together of the romantic couple. Discuss how the senex function is carried out in at least three movies.

C. More than one critic has suggested that urban environments are a factor in the tensions with which romantic comedies typically begin. Although romantic comedies usually begin in cities, they often leave the urban environment at least temporarily. Discuss this factor in four comedies.