We will be using WebCT in this course as an aide to our in-class work. This syllabus is a dynamic document. While the assignments are outlined and due dates will never be changed to an earlier date, you need to check WebCT to see if there are new notices, updates or further clarifications on assignments, etc. Do not just print this out and never return. You must check the WebCT site regularly. We live in a cyber-age so welcome to it.

Professor Judith Swift

Materials and syllabus: www.uri.edu/artsci/com/swift

Course Description: This course will examine the genres, background, content, structure and performance of humor, most particularly in stand-up comedy. It will explore the elements of comedy in general and will seek to place comedy in the framework of society. Students will observe and critique routines of various types and genres. Students will develop materials incorporating humor for specific settings, e.g. a business meeting, an award ceremony, and an introduction of a civic leader. Students will also be expected to collect appropriate materials, write original material and develop these into a routine to be performed in an open public venue.

Goals

• To be able to define humor and comedic structure;
• To demonstrate understanding of some major movements in humor and standup comedy;
• To know major historical personalities/humorists in standup comedy;
• To demonstrate critical and analytical skills related to standup comedy and the use of humor in communication in general;
• To have an applied experience in the development and delivery of a comedy routine;
• To explore and employ the spoken and physical language of humor;
• To be able to articulate the place and effect of humor in a multicultural society;
• To be able to make use of the power of humor as a communication tool.

Content: The course will begin with an examination of the origins of comedy and specifically with the traditions of social comedy in the guise of the fool or jester in the courts of Europe. You will examine genres of comedy (parody, satire, farce, slapstick), elements and structure of jokes (setup, punch line, payoff moment) and elements of comedic rehearsal and presentation (expectation/ violation, pace, delivery, context, physicality, sound effects) and a vocabulary of related terms. You will look at the extended comic monologue as well as the joke sequence routine. The course will also give some insight into the specific problems and advantages of comedy on radio and television. You will spend some time on improvisation and the ad-lib as methods for generating comedy.

You will review the work of some of the great extended monologists (e.g. Ruth Draper, Garrison Keillor, Shelley Berman), social commentary comics (Mort Sahl, Lenny Bruce, Bill Cosby, Chris Rock), sight gag comics (Red Skelton, Lucille Ball), and improvisational comics (Sid Caesar, Lily Tomlin, Elaine May).

A portion of most classes will involve student presentation of comic material and group analysis and criticism.

Written assignments will include the following:

• regular assignments of comedic writing in a variety of styles both in and out of class
• script for situation comedy
• a humorous speech for a predetermined audience and event
• a monologue
• critique of outside comic performance
• critique of comic film
• postings to the Discussion area as assigned
• final project

All writings will, of course, be word-processed and use correct grammar, spelling, etc., with references and resources properly credited. Length is to be adequate to address the assignment. In other words, you determine the length based on your assessment of how best to complete the task. Assignments should be uploaded through WebCT.. There is no need for hard copy. You will also turn in a written version of your humorous speech (see Submission of Written Work below).

WebCT: There is a WebCT site for this class and you will be automatically added. I will use WebCT to post important notices and extended information on assignments. You will also be required to post to the Discussion section. This is also useful for questions to which everyone might want the answer. In addition, it allows you to communicate with groups for project work. Papers will all be uploaded through WebCT.

Performance/participation assignments will include the following:

• oral research report on a comedic performer to be approved;
• humorous speech for a target audience and event;
• comic monologue;
• participation in the presentation, analysis and criticism of situation comedy;
• rehearsal and performance of a final comic routine;
• attendance at a comedy performance and brief assessment on the Discussion site.

Evaluation: Evaluation will be based on grades of the written projects outlined above, committed rehearsal and performance of the speech, monologue, final project, and Discussion postings, as well as regular class attendance and participation.

Weekly Activity:

General Notes: This syllabus is an outline of proposed events. It is subject to change. I will never change it to make anything due earlier for you. I may change the order of things to allow for a special opportunity or to allow additional exploration on a particular topic. I will supply additional supplementary readings along the way.

Check here for updates and details on assignments. If you miss a class, get the notes from a classmate. I will try to assist you in cases of genuine emergencies but otherwise do not have time to give a lecture twice.

Communication: I expect everyone to use WebCT. E-mail personal notes and inquiries; post to WebCT Discussion tool for general issues and commentaries in order that we can communicate efficiently with each other. We will use this tool to increase class discussion by posting additional ideas, observations, questions, jokes, and insights. If you need to see me, stop by during office hours, call or e-mail and I’ll get you in as quickly as possible.

Submission of Written Work: All written assignments are to be submitted though WebCT. The file should be saved as YOURLASTNAME_MONOLOGUE.DOC (or whatever the topic of the assignment happens to be). The document should open to reveal your name, the date and the topic as a header on the paper. If more than one person developed the script/project, then all names should be listed. Do not deviate from this format. I do not want to be trying to figure out who sent what paper on what topic. I will disregard incorrect submissions.

Attendance: Attendance is expected. Each class is 3 hours and 45 minutes long. If you cannot stay focused for that length of time, drop the class.This class is a whine-free zone. Furthermore, you are upperclass Communication Studies majors and I assume you want the stimulation of class discussion with a professor and your peers. If you will not attend on a given day because of an emergency (and it better be of the "I can't fog a mirror" variety), please call or e-mail. Absences will hurt your grade because class participation is an important aspect of my evaluation of your work. If you are working on a group project and do not show to work with your group, that counts doubly against you. Groups cannot function as teams if they do not support each other with respect. Blowing the team off is disrespectful. One class is a lot of class time so if you plan to miss classes --even one, it will hurt your grade. Much of the work is participatory and cannot be made up. We have ten classes and one is a final exam period. Be there on time, prepared, attentive and ready to work.

Reading List:

Other readings and/or viewings as applicable and assigned including excerpts from books, films, articles, magazine and newspaper reviews.

Grading: Grades will be determined in accordance with the University system as described in the University Manual beginning in Section 8.53.10.

Honor Code: I expect each of you to contribute his/her own work; however, I also encourage you to work together to solve problems, achieve solid analysis, critique performances, and even to prepare and explore the theses of your final performances. I also expect that you will all be direct about crediting yourself and/or others about completed work. There is nothing wrong with assisting each other. The only caveat is to acknowledge that assistance. With regard to group work, you will be required to sign a contract agreeing to be responsible for disclosing the amount of your work and to be forthright about how much you did or did not contribute. This saves each of you from ever having to be in the awkward position of reporting or covering for another student. I also know each of you want to be honorable in your individual or group projects. On the other hand, if a student violates rules pertaining to plagiarism or cheating, I will report that student to the appropriate university authorities. I will do this because it is no favor to cover for a person who acts dishonestly. We call this enabling. It is also unfair to the students in the class who come by their grade honestly. For information on plagiarism, please see the University Manual beginning with Section 8.27.10.

Special Needs: If you have any special circumstances arising from a disability, please let me know how I can assist you. As stated in the University Manual: "The student with a disability shall be responsible for self-identification to the Disability Services for Students in the Office of Student Life, providing appropriate documentation of disability, requesting accommodation in a timely manner, and follow-through regarding accommodations requested." In other words, it is your responsibility to make arrangements for any special needs and my responsibility to accommodate them with the assistance of the office of Disability Services for Students.

Philosophy of Teaching: I am committed to an engaging, active partnership of learning in which I rediscover and discover aspects of comedic communication/presentation along with you. I am also interested in using comedy as a springboard for the exploration of a wide range of topics from historical events to contemporary issues. Comedy is at its best when it serves as a catalyst to inspire continued communication. Humor is a catalyst for social interaction and communication. Humor is of fundamental importance in intercultural communication. The question of "what is funny" leads us to examine our own taste and preferences. The exploration of comedy allows us to consider circumstances in which human beings display their most exalted and most depraved impulses and actions. In short, this is exciting stuff. However, just as no one is responsible for our individual happiness but us, no one is responsible for our intellectual excitement. I can bring mine to the classroom but you also need to be prepared to risk exposing and exploring yours. Learning should be fun and painful–thinking ‘til it hurts, and addictive. I look forward to the time we will have together examining and laughing at the variations of standup comedy.

Classroom Etiquette: Although I am perfectly happy to enjoy the benefits of an informal classroom in which people feel free to speak without the raising of hands and can sit in a less formal arrangement than row-by-row, this informal setting requires a particular adherence to good manners. Quite simply, I expect you all to be respectful of me and of each other. This includes extraneous private commentary between and among students, the use of any telecommunications devices that connect you to the outside world, and the continued courtesy of respectful attention without interruption when others are speaking. We all learned this behavior either at home or in Kindergarten or both. You are the second Sesame Street generation, the MTV generation; but you grew up with TV shows that taught the value of please and thank you as directly as others taught shake your booty. Consider this experience to be one in which your communication style will be judged and a major part of that judgment is your ability to be courteous on both an interpersonal and group level. I embrace humor; I do not embrace disruption. I am utterly intolerant of any student being harshly judgmental or making fun of a fellow student. I expect you are all courteous people at heart and will have absolutely no difficulty in meeting and exceeding these expectations. If your cell phone rings in my class, guess who will answer it?

Censorship: This class examines an area of human expression, which cannot be fully explored, examined, created or tested in an atmosphere of judgment or disapproval. While we will discuss what constitutes hurtful humor OR hurtful intent, we must concurrently be open to freedom of expression as fundamental to the creative process of humor. There will be no censorship in this class. This includes topics such as race, gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, age, physical appearance, etc. At the same time, however, we will all discuss and agree upon an in-class method for assuring a safe place for those who find humor hurtful to express that feeling and for all of us to analyze this impact with empathy and respect.

N.B.: Although the subject of this class is humor, the process of studying, analyzing and preparing comedic material is demanding. While humor is to some degree subjective, there are numerous objective standards by which it can be judged and evaluated. It will never be sufficient to find or make something funny. The concomitant obligation will be to analyze why it was funny and/or how one planned it to be funny. In essence, much of the work will be tedious, repetitive, demanding, painful, rigorous and, with lots of hard work, ultimately funny and fun.

Field Trip: There will be a field trip to Jake Johansen on Sunday, July 15. It is important for all of the class to attend as a group so that we all see the same performance. Please make any work or personal arrangements ASAP. Cost is listed above. You must make your own reservations. You may bring a friend if you have one. If not, go and make one. It's college.

Materials: please go to www.uri.edu/artsci/com/swift to locate Writing Tips and Brainstorming: The Creative Process.