Arts & Culture
A note in support of Marxism
Columnist
Over winter breaks, I rediscovered something that I always love in the back of my mind but tend to forget about. It’s old art dating from the 1930s and 40s mostly, and I fear that it may soon be forgotten by too many and fall into obscurity.
I’m speaking of Marxism, though not of the type written about by Karl in his manifesto. I speak precisely of the work of Groucho, Chico, Harpo and Zeppo, collectively known as The Marx Brothers.
It has long been put to me that in the world of classic comedy you’re either in the Marx camp or that of the Three Stooges. The tired slapstick antics of Larry, Curly, Moe, Shemp, and any other Stooge that rounded out their numbers just never struck a chord with me. I’ve never seen the point.
The magic of Marx on the other hand has struck me as brilliant since I was a young child. Groucho Marx is the undisputed king of the one-liner. No man, woman or beast was safe from the barbs of his sharp tongue, yet he always got the girl in the end. He is my hero.
Chico was the perfect foil and second banana with his fake Italian accent and ability to twist words and exacerbate conversation partners to the point of madness. Always at his side was the mute Harpo who didn’t need words to bring uproarious guffaws. His speech came in the form of horn honks and sight gags making his compulsive woman chasing even more deliciously bizarre and chuckle inducing.
The story of the great Marx films are all pretty much the same. Groucho plays an ill-suited authority figure. Chico and Harpo play a conman team, usually hired by Groucho. Zeppo fits in somewhere as the straight man. Put them together and watch hilarity ensue.
It would be a shame to let the only legacy of the Marx Brothers be the funny nose and glasses gags modeled after Groucho’s signature look and found in joke shops and dollar stores around the world. I implore you my fellow students to seek out the great films Duck Soup, Horse Feathers, A Night at the Opera, A Day at the Races or any other works of Marx. Together we can make sure these legends are not forgotten and possibly begin a new Marxist revolution!
