Hui, Isaac : The comedy of the "para-site": Duck Soup, Volpone, and Hamlet
(Category: Articles which mention the Marx Brothers, but have a different main topic)
Abstract
[The] article argues that the comedy of Mosca the parasite in Volpone is related to his role as a parasite. ... [At] the same time, he becomes who he claims he is not. To quote another famous line from the Marx Brothers: "He may look like an idiot, and talk like an idiot, but don't let that fool you. He really is an idiot." While the set-up of this joke makes us believe that there is a difference between "he" and the "idiot," the punch line says that there is none.
In order to justify this theory, this article rereads Mosca's scene in great detail with the theory of Lacan. Through the discussion, this paper argues that the parasite’s speech is full of internal inconsistencies and contradictions. Even though the parasite claims that he is different from Volpone's three "bastards" (Nano the dwarf, Androgyne the hermaphrodite, and Castrone the eunuch), his speech suggests that he is no different from the trio. He believes in his own words and their power because he is situated in his "para-site." In the final two parts of this article, the discussion will refer back to the mirror scene in Duck Soup, exemplifying the logic of comedy through the mechanism of the "para-site." Moreover, this paper addresses the different functioning of the "mirror stage" in comedy and tragedy through comparing Duck Soup, Volpone, and Hamlet...
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in "The Comparatist", Vol. 40, University of North Carolina Press, Oct 2016
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The Marx Brothers - Los Hermanos Marx - האחים מרקס -
マルクス兄弟 - Les Freres Marx - 마르크스형제 -
Братья Маркс -
Bröderna Marx - برادران مارکس - I Fratelli Marx - Братята Маркс - Bracia Marx -
Germans Marx - الأخوة ماركس - 馬克思兄弟 -
Αδελφοί Μαρξ - Irmãos Marx
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Frank Bland's Why A Duck?
Mikael Uhlin's Marxology
