Festive Comedy takes its sub-generic name from both occasionalism and philosophical content. These comedies are generally performed on festive occasions and deal with festivity as theme or as a philosophical outlook towards life.
Twelfth Night takes its title from a festive occasion on the 12th night since the crucifixion--the night when the body of the Christ would strike back with epiphany.
At the level of content, Shakespeare's play deals with the clash between mock-puritanical melancholy, as exemplified by the character of Malvolio and the festive spirit of Feste, as his name itself suggests.
The masking trope is an essential part of the rituals of festivity.
The attitudes to love as expressed by the love-lorn Duke of Illyria, Orsino and the superficiality of Olivia and Viola's romantic ideals--all relate to a festive conception of love, satirical in its absolute dearth of seriousness and sincerity.
The festivity in Twelfth Night has its political content in terms of a subversive decadent carnivalesque spirit, as highlighted by the low-life figures and their powerful foray into the court life through Malvolio's gulling.
The sub-plot with all its dark undercolours are suggestive of a tragi-comic mode.
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