Measuring the Comedy in Measure for Measure

Measure for Measure by William Shakespeare, in an Aristotelian sense, is an traditional romantic comedy. The main lovers, Claudio and Juliet, are separated at the beginning of the book, but they eventually are reunited and wed each other at the end of the book. The main characters, of which there are multiple, all rise in fortune by the end of the play. Many of the characters have problems with morality. One of the main characters is a Duke, which breaks the "ordinary people as main characters" tradition, but he is disguised as a Friar for a large part of the play which is a humbler position. Even though it follows the traditional rules of a romantic comedy, does it really apply to modern day?

While the Duke is disguised as a Friar (checking the state of his territory), a subordinate named Angelo takes power. He sends a man, Claudio, to death for impregnating a girl, Juliet, before they are married. Claudio's sister Isabella, a nun, attempts to convince Angelo to take mercy on Claudio; Angelo becomes entranced with Isabella and says if Isabella sleeps with him, he will spare Claudio. Isabella, who is supposed to be chaste as a nun, rejects this idea, but it turns out Angelo has a woman he engaged and then left for dead when she lost her dowry. This woman sleeps with Angelo instead of Isabella, and, through a series of mistaken identities, everyone lives happily ever after, including Claudio.

But is this relevant? And is it actually funny? A man forcing himself onto a woman in exchange for her brother's life and then planning to kill her brother anyway doesn't seem very funny to me. I would say that, though this play does follow the traditional rules of comedy, it puts a positive, comedic spin on something that is disgusting. It actually gives a dark message about self-control and how good things can happen to those who did not hold their word (as things ended well for Angelo). So, for this example of dramatic comedy, I would say it does not say anything redeeming about human nature or society.