Comedy for our Time (and half a time out}

From James Thurber's Fables for Our Time

"The Seal Who Became Famous"

The seal who lay basking on the large, smooth rock said to himself: all I ever do is swim. None of the other seals can swim any better than I can, he reflected, but, on the other hand, they can also just as well. The more he pondered the monotony and uniformity of his life, the more depressed he became. That night he swam away and joined the circus.

Within two years the seal had become a great balancer. He could balance lamps, billiard cues, medicine balls, hassocks,taborets, dollars cigars, and anything else you gave him. When he read in a book a reference to the Great Seal of the United States, he thought it meant him. In the winter of his third year as a performer he went back to the large smooth rock to visit his friends and family. He gave them the Big Town stuff right away; latest slang, liquor in a golden flask, zippers, a gardenia in his lapel. He balanced for them everything that was on the rock to balance, which wasn't much. When he'd run through his repertory, he asked the other seals if they could do what he had done and they all said no. "Okay," he said. "Let's see you do something I can't do." Since the only thing they could do was swim, they all plunged off the rock into the sea. The circus seal plunged right after them, but he was hampered by smart city clothes, including a pair of $17 shoes, that he began to founder at once. Since he hadn't been in swimming for three years, he had forgotten what to do with his flippers and tail, and he went down for the third time before the other seals could reach him. They gave him a simple but dignified funeral.

Moral: whom God has equipped with flippers should not monkey around with zippers.


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Those of you who may have been around 100 posts ago may recall my first or second post, which was, "The Bear Who Could Leave it Alone" from the same author.
Those who have skipped The Thurber Carnival--well--"how could it be worse!!!???" Eh?

Anthony Esolen, a contributor to Touchstone magazine,said in the lead article* that, "Comedy Trumps Tragedy--in the Christian World, Comedy Is King." For example, "The pagans believed that the world was tragic, and penned their comedy accordingly. We Christians believe the world is comic, and that allows us to show humor on the move, with many a tragic possibility along the way. It makes no sense to forgive what cannot be otherwise. There is no romance in following the fortunes of a character fixed in place. (e.g. NOT Bottom the Weaver at/ et.all) Fixity is hell, and there is no forgiveness there. But there is something other than fixity in that cramped flat in Bensonhurst." (Referring to The Honeymooners)

Ralph Wood of Baylor, who is a scholar in 20th Century Catholic writers, authored a book called, "The Comedy of Redemption", which as one blurb said,"offers an enlivening approach to the study of literary art and faith. He unabashedly argues that eschatological grace is the impetus for earthly humor and joy...and admirably makes valid connections between the comedy of the Gospel and the comedic vision espoused by (Percy, O"Connor, Updike, and Peter deVries)." Dr. Wood was also one of Stephen Schuler's professors--but I got no discount on his books. (Awwwww)

I think Joyce's latest comment is helping me to lighten up. When I lose my sense of humor and "declense" into criticism--"Danger Danger Will Robinson--it's the Professor again!!" I seem to have recovered some joy in spite of my wife being OOT--visiting Stephen, Grace, Keziah, and 'Thea. Hope y'all enjoy this week as much as they will!!!


*May-June 2010