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Jownefs of the Subject 5 others by the ridiculous Light it is fet in. ,
The accurate F. 5o#a fixes the Notion of Offlwrfy much better : according to that excellent Critic, Comedy differs from Tragedy in this, that the Comic Writer invents both the Names of his Perfons, and the Anions he prefents j where- as the Tragic Writers only invent the latter 5 the former they are to take from Hiftory.
Upon the whole, Comedy may be defined an Image, or Reprefentation of the ordinary Life of Men : it exhibits their common Actions and P;iffions 3 expofes, and ridicules their Failings, to preferve the Spectators from 'em, or to correct 'em. Cicero defines it the Imitation of Life, the Mirror of Cuftom, and the Image of Truth.
There is a Difpute among the Critics, whether Comedy be a Poem, or a mere Conversation. They who maintain the latter, do it on the foot of this general Opinion, that a Poem is a Difcourfe in "Verfe : F. Soffit infifts on the former, and fliews, that as Comedy has the Fable, or Allegory, it has every thing eflential to Poetry. See Poem, and Fable.
Comedy and Tragedy were originally one and the fame Thing ; 'Their common Origin fee under Tragedy.
M. Soileatt fays, Comedy took its rife at Athens, from the happy Iifues or Conclufions of Tragedies. On this Principle, the Cataftrophe fhould have been the proper Criterion, or diftinguifhing Mark between Tragedy and Comedy 3 and all other differences only accedental.
2)es face's fortune* du fpeB&cle tragique 'Dans Atbines naquit la Comcdie antique.
After the Crave and Serious became fcparated from the Ridiculous, and Tragedy and Comedy became two diftinct Arts; People applied themfelves to cultivate the former, and neglected the latter : So that Comedy continued in its Infan- cy, with little Improvements, while Tragedy grew up to a perfect Art : this, once arrived at its height, they began to think of cultivating Comedy.
With regard to the various Changes and Revolutions Co- medy has undergone, it is commonly diftinguifh'd into three Kinds, viz-, the Antient, wherein there was nothing feign'd 3 the Mean, where the Subject was real, but the Names ficti- tious ; the New, where both Names and Things are ficti- tious.
The Antient was that firft in ufe, when the fuprerne Power was in the Hands of the People 5 and when, on that ac- count, the Poets were at their full liberty to fay what they pleas'd, and of whom they pleas'd 3 by Name to rail at People in Authority, and openly charge Magiftrates with Crimes ; fparing no Age, Sex, or Quality.
This is very obfervable in the Frogs, and the Clouds of of Ariflophanes 3 where it is to be noted, that tho the rail- ing Part was occafionally diftributed among all the Actors, yet the chief was laid on the Chorus.
When the Athenian Liberties became funk up in the Ty- ranny of a few, it was no longer fafe for the Poets to ufe their old Licenfe 3 Men of Office being now to be fkreen'd from reproach. The Chorus, therefore, became ufelefs, and was therefore dropp'd 3 and thus commene'd what we call Coraadia media, («jh, or the Mean Comedy. See Chorus.
Under this, the Poets were not allow'd to name the Per- ft#ns ; and therefore Names were to be invented : but then the Perfons were (6 well pointed out, that 'twas no difficult matter to know 'em.
At length, however, they were oblig'd to reprefs even this Licenfe : and this Reform gave occafion to the New Co- medy j which only brought upon the Stage feign'd Adven- tures, and imaginary Names.
This laft Kind alone was receiv'd among the Romans 3 who yet made a new Subdivifion thereof, into Antient, Mean, and NeiVj according to the various Periods of the Common- wealth. Among the antient Comedies were rank'd thofc of Livitts Andromcus $ among the Mean, thofe of 'Pacitvius 5 and among the New ones thofe of Terence,
Comedy, as well as 1'ragedy, has its Effential, and its In- tegrant Parts.
Its Effential Parts, in the Language of the Antients, are the Protafis, Fpitafts, Catajlafis, and Cataflrophe.
The Protafis is the beginning, or opening 5 where the Subject is jufi cnter'd upon, the Character of the Perfons {hewn, and the Intereft, or part, each has in the Action. See Protasis.
In the Epitaffs, the Intrigues begin : they are carry'd on, and heightened in the Catafiafis 3 and unravell'd in the Ca~ te.ftrope. SeeEpiTAsis, Catastrophe, ££c.
"The Integrant Parts are the five Acls into which the Co- medy is divided, agreeable to that Precept of Horace-, Neve minor quinto neitfit. produclior Atlu.
The Acts are divided into Scenes 5 the Number whereof is not fix'd, either by Reafon or Experience, but depends on the Things to be done in each Act, and the Number of Per-
fons to be employ 'd. See Act, Scene, &c. fee alfo M ners, Humour, £^c. An ' 1
Among the antient Romans, Comedies were diftinguifhu according to the Quality of the Perfons reprefented and th Drefs they wore, into Togat<£, Preetexttg, Trabeatg a j Tabernarice 3 which laft were thofe where the Scene lav i Colleges, or among People of the loweft Rank, agreeing pretty nearly with our Farces. **
In the Reprefentation, Comedy was dtftinguifh'd from th Tragedy, by the Sock wore in the former, and the Buskin in the latter. See Sock, and Buskin.
Among us, Comedy is diftinguifh'd from Farce, in that the former reprefents Nature as fhe is 5 the other diftorts or overcharges her. They both paint from the Life, but with different Views : the one to make Nature known, the other to make her ridiculous. See Farce.
Scaliger derives the Word Comedy from titffteu, Villages or Conventicles of peafants 3 by reafon, fays Varro, the Jttic Youth us'd to travel thro' the Country, and pick up Money by their Comic Rcprefentations 3 or from a-xl tov Ka^u^lJ i, e. viculus 5 becaufe the Scene was laid in ordinary Hou- fes : whereas, in Tragedy, it lay in Palaces, and the Houfcs of the Great.
COMET, popularly call'd a blazing Star, a heavenly Body, rifing fuddenly, and again difappearing , and during the Time of its Appearance, moving in its proper Orbit like a Planet. See Star, and Planet.
Comets have this to diftinguifh them from the other Stars, that they are ufually attended with a long Train, o r Tail of Light, always oppofite to the Sun, and which is of the fainter Luftre, the further it is from the Body. Hence arifes a popular divifion of Comets into three Kinds, viz, bearded, taiPd, and hairy Comets 5 tho, in effect, this divifi- on rather relates to the feveral Circumftances of the fame Co- met, than to the Phenomena of feveral.
Thus, when the Comet is Eaftward of the Sun, and moves from it, the Comet is faid to be bearded, barbatus 5 becaufe the Light marches before it, in manner of a Beard.
When the Light is Weft ward of the Sun, and fets after it, the Comet is faid to be tailed, caudatus 3 becaufe the Train follows it, in manner of a Tail.
LaftJy, when the Comet and the Sun are diametrically op- pofite, (the Earth between them) the Train is hid behind the Body of the Comet, excepting a little that appears around it, in form of a Border of Hair, hence called Crinitus. Nature of Comets.
As to the Nature of Comets, the unfrequency of their ap- pearing, together with the feeming Irregularities of their Phenomena, have left Philofophers much in the dark : Thofe who liv'd before Arifiotle, accounted for 'era by fuppofing the heavenly Spaces full of an infinite Number of Stars \ and many ofthefe too remote, or too fmall to have ever come under the Notice of Aftronomers : Thefe invisible Stars, they further fuppos'd to move by their own proper Mo- tion every way 5 finifhing their Courfes in very unequal Times. Now, a Comet, according to them, was a vaft heap or aflemblage of thefe little Stars meeting together, by rea- fon of the Inequality of their Motions, and uniting into a vifible Mafs 3 which muft again difappear, as thofe Stars fe- parate, and each proceed in its Courle.
But how thefe Stars fhould thus meet, coalefce, and form a Body, which in all Pofitions of rhe Sun fhould refemble^a Tail, and again feparate, is a Myftery.
This Opinion, therefore, Arifiotle eafily overturn^ fub- fHtuting another in its ftead: According to him, Comets were only a kind of tranfient Fires, or Meteors, confifting of Ex- halations rais'd to the upper Region of the Air, and there fet on fire ; far below the Moon's Courfe.
But neither is this Hypothecs more juft than the other : For on this Principle, the Light of the Comet being inde- pendent of the Sun, would be difpers'd every way alike, without any appearance of a Train, or Tail, which is con- trary to the Phenomena. Befides, that the modern Aftro- nomers, who have meafur'd the diftance between the Co- mets and the Earth, find that the Comets have no fenfible Parallax 5 which could not be, were they not much more re- mote than the Moon, whofe Parallax is fenfible. See Pa- rallax.
Hevdius from a great Number of Obfervations, propofes it as his Opinion, that the Comets, like the Solar Macule or Spots, which they pretty much referable, are form'd and condens'd out of groff/cr Exhalations of his Body. In which Notion he agrees nearly with Kepler, who maintains, thatO mets are generated i n the ^ther in vaft Numbers, like Fifhes in the Ocean ; tho they don't all become vifible, either becaufe of their fmallnefs, or becaufe they lay a long time under the Horizon.
But Sir I. Newton has fhewn the Fallacy of this Hypo- thecs, by proving that the Comet of iC8o, in its paffags thro' the Neighbourhood of the Sun, would have been dif- fipated, had it confifted of Exhalations of the Sun and Pla- nets '.
