Satire

Satire Defined

Satire the use of humor and wit to point out the foolishness of certain actions, beliefs, characteristics, and ideas

It is often used to discredit ore remove the legitimacy of other’s ideas

Why Humor?

Yelling can make someone change once, but laughter can make someone’s mind change forever

Satire Defined

Satirical writing uses the following techniques to create humor:

• Irony

• Exaggeration

• Mockery

• Sarcasm

• Wit

• Juxtaposition

Satire in Practice

High Fiber Cereal Ad Saturday Night Live Parody Ad from 1991

Satire in Practice

Conservative talk show host Glenn Beck on a 2010 episode

Glenn Beck from a 2009 episode

Jon Stewart on The Daily Show satirizing Glenn Beck

Jon Stewart satirizing Glenn Beck

Ye Olde Thyme Satyre

Exaggeration is often used in satire to illustrate the ridiculousness of an opponents position by taking it outside normal bounds

Re-application through juxtoposition is when an opponents idea or position is applied to an inappropriate situation which exaggerates the position’s failings

Noted satirist and laugh riot Jonathon Swift

Ye Olde Thyme Satyre

Writing in 1729, Swift wrote an essay entitled: A Modest Proposal for preventing the children of poor people in Ireland, from being a burden on their parents or country, and for them beneficial to the public

A the time child starvation and poverty were major issues in Ireland and many proposals were being made to stop the Irish from having so many children

Pause here to read from A Modest Proposal

Noted satirist and laugh riot Jonathon Swift

Satire in Slaughterhouse Five

Vonnegut uses irony and exaggeration extensively in the novel

Roland Weary

Billy Pilgrim’s appearance in war

Other yet-to-be-read examples

Be on the lookout for examples of satire in the novel because they help hint where Vonnegut is making meaning

Satire Writing Assignment

That’s right: there’s a writing assignment for this.

Prompt: Write a five-paragraph essay in which you identify what is being satirized and how the artists are satirizing their subject. You will then explain the artists’ message and how they use satire to make their point. This is due in one week on February 27.

You can choose one of the following sources for this assignment:

South Park, Season 17 Episode 10: “The Hobbit”

The full text of Jonathon Swift’s A Modest Proposal

Kurt Vonnegut’s short story “Harrison Bergeron”