PURSUITS OF HAPPINESS: THE HOLLYWOOD COMEDY OF REMARRIAGE (1984), Stanley Cavell

During the ’30s and ’40s, Hollywood produced a genre of madcap comedies that emphasized reuniting the central couple after divorce or separation. Their female protagonists were strong, independent, and sophisticated. Here, Stanley Cavell names this new genre of American film “the comedy of remarriage” and examines seven classic movies for their cinematic techniques and for such varied themes as feminism, liberty, and interdependence. Included are Adam’s Rib, The Awful Truth, Bringing Up Baby, His Girl Friday, It Happened One Night, The Lady Eve, and The Philadelphia Story. (Book Cover)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction: Words for a Conversation

1. Cons and Pros: The Lady Eve

2. Knowledge as Transgression: It Happened One Night

3. Leopards in Connecticut: Bringing Up Baby

4. The Importance of Importance: The Philadelphia Story

5. Counterfeiting Happiness: His Girl Friday

6. The Courting of Marriage: Adam’s Rib

7. The Same and Different: The Awful Truth

Appendix: Film in the University

Acknowledgments

Index