An Introduction to Social Commentary

Spring Semester - Guiding Questions What social responsibilities do artists (film makers, authors, etc.) have to the world? How do artists influence culture? Spring Semester - Guiding Questions

To begin, we must understand what social commentary is and how it works in society.

Social commentary is the act of expressing an opinion on the nature of society or a social problem. It is most often done with the idea of implementing or promoting change. Encyclopedia.laborlawtalk.com/Social_commentary A Definition:

How is social commentary accomplished? By informing the general populace about a given social problem and appealing to people’s sense of justice. Examples: Essays, editorials, books, speeches, etc. It’s not just written though… check out these visual examples. How is social commentary accomplished?

Today, with the invention of the Internet, increasing numbers of people have been enjoying the opportunity to voice their opinions. The Web is probably the best place for social commentary because it allows the dissemination of ideas among enormous audiences. It is therefore one of the greatest modern-time advances in terms of freedom of speech and thought. Key Ideas:

It commonly comes from educated upper class members, but might also come from the lower social strata as did the SC of Charles Dickens. Who creates it?

Two excellent examples of strong and bitter social commentary are the writings of Jonathan Swift and Martin Luther Swift = exposed the appalling poverty in Ireland at the time, which was viewed as the British government’s fault Luther = the founder of the reformation movement against the deplorable practices of the Catholic Church

A Modest Proposal 1729, Social Satire By Jonathan Swift A literary or artistic work holding up human vices and follies to ridicule or scorn Wit, irony, or sarcasm used to expose and discredit vice or folly Satire often shows the ridiculousness of an issue, or proposes a ridiculous solution to a problem www.Webster.com + American Heritage Dictionary (2001)

Tools to Create Social Commentary Irony – When something happens in a way you wouldn’t expect it to happen -Verbal Irony – Say one thing, yet mean another; sarcasm Ex: Saying, “Oh great!” after something rotten happens. -Situational Irony – Occurs when events differ from typical expectations Ex: You break a date with your girlfriend so you can go to the ball game with the guys. When you go to the concession stand, you run into your date who is with another guy. Tools to Create Social Commentary

-Dramatic Irony – When the reader knows something important that a character does not know Ex: Have you ever seen a horror movie that has a killer on the loose? You, and the rest of the audience, know that the teenagers should not go walking in the woods late at night, but they think a midnight stroll would be romantic. Needless to say, the teens become the next victims. -Hyperbole – Exaggeration of words, ideas, concepts, etc. Ex: She can have any boy that she wants.

-Understatement – Figure of speech that underplays the significance of an event Ex: Saying, “The food was tolerable,” after eating food prepared by Gordon Ramsey. -Bathos – Quickly going from the serious to the ridiculous Ex: In The Indredibles, the superfamily is trying to save Metroville from a rampaging robot. On their journey, they start bickering. Dash – Are we there yet? Mr. Incredible – We’ll get there when we get there.

Tools to Create Social Commentary Other tools for creating social commentary . . . -Humor - joking -Sarcasm – saying on thing, but meaning another -Stating an opinion – editorial, television show, music Social commentary may use satire, but it doesn’t have to!! Tools to Create Social Commentary