Satire - Academic Mode

Satire Definition
Satire is a technique used by writers to expose and criticize the stupidity and corruption of an individual or a society through humor, irony, exaggeration or ridicule. It is supposed to improve humanity by criticizing its follies and weaknesses. A writer in a satire uses fictional characters representing real people to expose and condemn their corruption.

A writer can direct a satire on a person, a country, or even the whole world. Usually a satire is a comical scripture that is poked fun at an individual or a society to expose its stupidity and shortcomings. He also hopes that those he criticizes will improve their characters by overcoming their weaknesses.

Satire and Irony
Satire and irony are related. Irony is the difference between what is said and what is done. and what is actually meant. This is why writers often use satire to point out the dishonesty and silliness of individuals and society and to criticize them through ridicule them.

Examples of Satire in Everyday Life
Most of the political cartoons we see in newspapers and magazines every day are examples of satire. These cartoons hilariously criticize some of the recent actions of political figures.

Some TV shows are satirical examples such as The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, and The Larry Sanders Show. These shows claim to target what they think are stupid, political and social perspectives.

Let's see an example of Stephen Colbert's social satire:

"If this is to be a Christian nation that doesn't help the poor, we either have to be like that pretend Jesus is as selfish as we or we must acknowledge that He commanded us to love the poor and unconditionally serve those in need, and then admit that we just don't want to. “

Examples of Satire in Literature
Example 1: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (By Mark Twain)
In Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn there are numerous examples of satire. He uses satire as a tool to share his ideas and opinions on slavery, human nature and many other issues that have affected American society during this period t time.

Below are some quotes from the novel that demonstrate the satire:

" What is the use of doing right when it is a chore to do right and it is no problem to do wrong and the wages are exactly the same? ”(Ch.16)
“ There was nobody in the church except maybe a pig or two because there was no lock on the door and pigs like a puncheon floor in the summer because it's cool. Notice that most people don't go to church only when they have to. but a pig is different. ”(Ch.18)
“ The most regrettable thing is a mob; that is an army: a mob; They do not fight with the courage that is born in them, but with the courage that is borrowed from their masses and their officers, but a mob without any man at the head is below pity. "(Chapter 22)
Example # 2: The Rape of the Lock (by Alexander Pope)
Alexander Pope's The Rape of the Lock is an example of poetic satire in which he has satirized the upper middle class of 18th century England of young elegant ladies and gentlemen. , and the frivolity of her actions. For example, Pope says, about Belinda, after losing her lock of hair:

“If the nymph will break Diana's law,
Or some brittle porcelain jar receives a defect,
OR stains his honor, or his new brocade ... "

The line mocks the values of the fashionable class of that time. Trivial things were thought to be equal to important things. For Belinda, the loss of her virtue becomes equal to

Example # 3: Gulliver Travels (By Jonathan Swift )
Gulliver Travels by Jonathan Swift is one of the best satirical works in English literature. Swift relentlessly satirizes Western politics, religion, and culture. Criticizing party politics in England, Swift writes:

“… that for more than seventy moons past there have been two wrestling parties in this Empire, under the names Tramecksan and Slamecksan from above and In Swift's time, two parties Rival politicians, the Whigs and the Tories, dominated the English political scene. Similarly, "The Kingdom of Lilliput" is dominated by two parties distinguished by the For the trivial disputes between the two Lilliputian parties, Swift satirizes the minor disputes of the two English parties of his day.

The role of satire
satire is ridiculing or criticizing the vices of society that the writer considers to be a threat to civilization. The writer considers that it is his obligation to expose these vices for the betterment of humanity. Anger is not making others laugh at people or ideas they make fun of; is intended to warn the public and change people's views on corruption and