Research - Dr. Steven Woodward
Dr. Steven Woodward
Department of English
Dr. Woodward’s current research focuses on the new phenomenon of cringe comedy. It will analyze the style and methods of individual examples of cringe comedy in relation to the history of screen comedy, in an attempt to identify the defining features of the genre as a whole. Cringe comedy may be defined as comedy that is so extreme in its violation of taboos or narrative conventions that it initially embarrasses its audience before allowing them any kind of comic relief in laughter. TV shows such as The Office and Curb Your Enthusiasm and movies such as Team America and Borat are good examples of cringe comedy. Dr. Woodward will explore cringe comedy on three fronts: first, in the context of the traditional comedy in general and screen comedy in particular; second, in relation to the social and cultural milieu in which it has flourished; and third, in terms of the social and psychological functions it might fulfill.
To date, only non-academic articles on the phenomenon of cringe comedy as a whole have appeared in English. No extended study has been published that conducts a rigorous analysis of this new trend in film and television comedy within the context of the history and theory of screen comedy. In fact, the history and theory of comedy is surprisingly under-researched at present; very few book-length analytical studies of recent film and television comedies have been published. Therefore, Dr. Woodward’s research is unique, both in combining analyses of a particular body of very recent popular culture texts with an expanded theoretical and historical framework and in using those analyses to arrive at conclusions about recent cultural history, the ongoing history of screen comedy, and the theory of comedy. By examining cringe comedy in relation to the history and theory of screen comedy, Dr. Woodward’s study will illuminate the cultural ethos of our own time and extend the historical and theoretical understanding of humour.
