this post was submitted on 09 Oct 2023
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I dont know if I completely agree "no comedy can age badly"
this https://youtu.be/cZIQZZpprHw is one of my parents' fondest comedy memories from growing up. To a modern audience its almost incomprehensible
see also this gag from Romeo and Juliet
There's also a bunch of Monty Python skits featuring a Mrs N-word (yes that n-word), and modern renditions of The Philosophers Song cut all of the mentions of "poofters" (equivalent of the f-slur for gay men) from the preamble.
I think Shakespeare exemplifies the rule itself. One not understanding it is a product of a lack of context of the time around which it was released. Take a course in Shakespeare and it will be covered (I was so lucky enough take a course under an absolute expert on the topic). I can see the objection "I shouldn't have to take a course to get it", but remember we are now stuck objecting now to one of the greatest bodies of writing in European history, a body that invented the foundation of much of modern comedy in inventing the Pun.
Many scholars seriously believe Shakespeare was the only author to ever use Puns effectively. I think that's an over-reach.