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BURLESQUE (Ital. burlesco, from burla...

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Originally appearing in Volume V04, Page 836 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.

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BURLESQUE (Ital. burlesco, from burla, a joke, fun, playful trick)

BURLESQUE (Ital. burlesco, from burla, a joke, fun, playful See also:
TRICK
trick) , a See also:

FORM (Lat. forma)

form of the comic in See also:

art, consisting broadly in an See also:

IMITATION (Lat. imitatio, from intitari, to imitate)

imitation of a See also:

WORK

work of art with the See also:

OBJECT

object of exciting See also:

LAUGHTER

laughter, by distortion or exaggeration, by turning, for example, the highly rhetorical into bombast, the pathetic into the See also:

MOCK

mock-sentimental, and especially by a ludicrous contrast between the subject and the See also:

style, making gods speak like See also:

COMMON

common men and common men like gods. While See also:

PARODY (Gr. s-apybia, literally a song sung beside, a comic parallel)

parody (q.v.), also based on imitation, relies for its effect more on the See also:

close following of the style of its counterpart, burlesque depends on broader and coarser effects. Burlesque may be applied to any form of art, and unconsciously, no doubt, may be found even in See also:

ARCHITECTURE (Lat. architectura, from the Gr. ap)(LTEKrwv, a master-builder)

architecture. In the graphic arts it takes the form better known as " See also:

CARICATURE (Ital. caricatura, i.e. "ritratto ridicolo," from caricare, to load, to charge; Fr. charge)

caricature " (q.v.). Its particular See also:

SPHERE (Gr. vclsa?pa, a ball or globe)

sphere is, however, in literature, and especially in See also:

DRAMA (literally "action," from Gr. Snail, act or do)

drama. The Batrachomachia, or See also:

BATTLE

Battle of the Frogs and Mice, is the earliest example in classical literature, being a See also:

TRAVESTY (Fr. travestie, from travestir, to disguise, se travestir, to change one's clothes; Lat. trans, across, and vestire, to clothe)

travesty of the Homeric epic. There are many true burlesque parts in the comedies of See also:

Aristophanes, e.g. the See also:

APPEARANCE (from Lat. apparere, to appear)

appearance of See also:

SOCRATES

Socrates in the Clouds. The See also:

ITALIAN

Italian word first appears in the Opere Burlesche of See also:

Francesco See also:

BERNI, FRANCESCO (1497–1536)

Berni (1497–1535). In See also:

France during See also:

PART

part of the reign of See also:

Louis XIV., the burlesque attained to See also:

GREAT

great popularity; burlesque Aeneids, Iliads and Odysseys were composed, and even the most sacred subjects were not See also:

LEFT

left untravestied. Of the numerous writers of these, P. See also:

SCARRON, PAUL (1610-166o)

Scarron is most prominent, and his Virgile Travesti (1648–1653) was followed by numerous imitators. In See also:

ENGLISH

English literature See also:

CHAUCER, GEOFFREY (? 1340-1400)

Chaucer's Rime of See also:

Sir Thopas is a burlesque of the See also:

long-winded See also:

MEDIEVAL

medieval romances.

Among the best-known true burlesques in English dramatic literature may be mentioned the 2nd See also:

DUKE (corresponding to Fr. duc, Ital. duca, Ger. Herzog)

duke of See also:

Buckingham's The See also:

REHEARSAL (from " rehearse," to say over again, repeat, recount, O.Fr. rehercer, from re, again, and hercer, to harrow, cf. " hearse," the original meaning being to rake or go over the same ground again as with a harrow)

Rehearsal, a burlesque of the heroic drama; See also:

Gay's See also:

BEGGAR

Beggar's See also:

OPERA (Italian for " work ")

Opera, of the Italian opera; and See also:

Sheridan's The Critic. In the later 19th See also:

CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century the name " burlesque " was given to a form of musical dramatic See also:

composition in which the true See also:

ELEMENT (Lat. elementum)

element of burlesque found little or no See also:

PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place. These musical burlesques, with which the Gaiety See also:

THEATRE (BEarpov, " a place for seeing," from OeacOae)

theatre, See also:

LONDON

London, and thenames of See also:

EDWARD

Edward See also:

Terry, Fred See also:

Leslie and Nellie See also:

Farren are particularly connected, See also:

DEVELOPED

developed from the earlier extravaganzas of J. R. See also:

PLANCHE, JEAN BAPTISTE GUSTAVE (1808–1857)

Planche, written frequently See also:

ROUND (O. Fr. rond, Lat. rotundus, the Fr. is the source also of Du. rond; Ger., Swed., Dan. and Nor. rond)

round See also:

FAIRY (Fr. fee, faerie; Prov. facia; Sp. hada; Ital. fata; med. Lat. fatare, to enchant, from Lat. fatum, fate, destiny)

fairy tales. The Gaiety type of burlesque has since given place to the " musical See also:

COMEDY

comedy," and its only survival is to be found in the See also:

MODERN

modern See also:

PANTOMIME

pantomime.

End of Article: BURLESQUE (Ital. burlesco, from burla, a joke, fun, playful trick)

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