Background:
- Satire: A literary mode based on criticism of people and society through ridicule. The satirist aims to reduce the practices attacked by laughing scornfully at them--and being witty enough to allow the reader to laugh, also. Ridicule, irony, exaggeration, and several other techniques are almost always present. The satirist may insert serious statements of value or desired behavior, but most often he relies on an implicit moral code, understood by his audience... The satirist's goal is to point out the hypocrisy of his target in the hope that either the target or the audience will return to a real following of the code. Thus, satire is inescapably moral even when no explicit values are promoted in the work, for the satirist works within the framework of a widely spread value system. Many of the techniques of satire are devices of comparison, to show the similarity or contrast between two things.
- Satire: An attack on or criticism of any stupidity or vice in the form of scathing humor, or a critique of what the author sees as dangerous religious, political, moral, or social standards. Satire became an especially popular technique used during the Enlightenment, in which it was believed that an artist could correct folly by using art as a mirror to reflect society. When people viewed the satire and saw their faults magnified in a distorted reflection, they could see how ridiculous their behavior was and then correct that tendency in themselves. The tradition of satire continues today. Popular cartoons such as The Simpsons and televised comedies like The Daily Show make use of it in modern media. Conventionally, formal satire involves a direct, first-person-address, either to the audience or to a listener mentioned within the work. An example of formal satire is Alexander Pope's Moral Essays. Indirect satire conventionally employs the form of a fictional narrative--such as Byron's Don Juan or Swift's Gulliver's Travels. Ridicule, irony, exaggeration, and similar tools are almost always used in satire. Horatian satire tends to focus lightly on laughter and ridicule, but it maintains a playful tone. Generally, the tone is sympathetic and good humored, somewhat tolerant of imperfection and folly even while expressing amusement at it. The name comes from the Roman poet Horace (65 BCE-8 CE), who preferred to ridicule human folly in general rather than condemn specific persons. In contrast, Juvenalian satire also uses withering invective, insults, and a slashing attack. The name comes from the Roman poet Juvenal (60-140 CE), who frequently employed the device, but the label is applied to British writers such as Swift and Pope as well.
Assignment:
Now that you've read the satire of others, it is time to create a satire of your own. Before you begin, consider the following characteristics of satire:
1. The subject should be serious. It should deal with something you consider to have a fault in society: school, community, politics, social problems, etc. You might consider a cause you feel strongly about or peruse newspapers or magazines for something timely.
2. You need to use one or more rhetorical devices to prove your point(s), such as: verbal irony, hyberbole, juxtaposition, metaphor - the choice is yours.
3. Remember: a rhetorical device such as hyperbole allows your reader to see through your serious tone. This is vital. Otherwise, he or she will not be able to distinguish that your piece is satire. Your diction choices are also important in revealing satire. Choose words that have connotations that will help you achieve your purpose.
4. Your tone will be logical and objective, although you may use your verbal irony as sarcasm. Like Swift ("A Modest Proposal") and Twain ("Advice for Youth"), you will be writing in the voice of one who holds the opposite opinion of the one you actually do. Many students have a difficult time being "mean" in writing satire. You are not being mean for the sake of hurting another. As long as that remains the case, you're fine. Keep in mind that the goal of any satirist is to point out wrongs with the intention of righting them by using humor as a weapon.
5. There is no minimum or maximum length for this assignment. The requirement is the one that allows you to achieve your purpose.
Links:
Optional, extra credit assignment:
Engage in a meaningful conversation (at least one paragraph or more) with at least one of your classmates.
Due date:
Friday, March 11th at midnight
