Editing Punch and Judy (section)

==Comedy  ==
Despite Punch's unapologetic murders throughout the performances, it is still considered a comedy. The humour is aided by a few things. Rosalind Crone suggests that, since the puppets are carved from wood, their facial expressions cannot change, but are stuck in the same exaggerated pose, which helps to deter any sense of realism and to distance the audience.<ref name="Crone, Rosalind 2006" /> The use of the [[swazzle]] also helps to create humour, and that the {{not a typo|swazzled}} sound of Punch's voice takes the cruelty out of Punch.<ref>Proschan, Frank (1981). "Puppet Voices and Interlocutors: Language in Folk Puppetry." ''The Journal of American Folklore'', Vol. 94, No. 374, Folk Drama (Oct.–Dec. 1981), pp.527–555. The American Folklore Society.</ref> According to Crone, a third aspect that helped make the violence humorous was that Punch's violence toward his wife was prompted by her own violence toward him.<ref name="Crone, Rosalind 2006" /> In this aspect, he retains some of his previous hen-pecked persona. This would suggest that, since Punch was merely acting violently out of self-defence, it was okay. This is a possible explanation for the humour of his violence toward his wife, and even towards others who may have somehow "had it coming."<ref name="Crone, Rosalind 2006" /> This suggestion better explains the humour of the violence toward the baby. Other characters that had to incur the wrath of Punch varied depending on the punchman, but the most common were the foreigner, the blind man, the publican, the constable, and the devil.<ref name="Crone, Rosalind 2006"/>