An Introduction to Satire Another way to persuade…

Using humor to persuade… Satire: a manner of writing that mixes a critical attitude with wit and humor in an effort to improve mankind and human institutions.

The necessary ingredients… Humor—Satire is funny! Criticism, either general criticism of humanity or human nature or specific criticism of an individual or group. Some kind of moral voice: simply mocking or criticism is not “satire.”

Four Techniques of Satire Incongruity To present things that are out of place or are absurd in relation to its surroundings.

Four Techniques of Satire Exaggeration/ Hyperbole To enlarge, increase, or represent something beyond normal bounds so that it becomes ridiculous and its faults can be seen.

Four Techniques of Satire Reversal To present the opposite of the normal order (e.g., the order of events, hierarchical order).

Four Techniques of Satire Parody To imitate the techniques and/or style of some person, place, or thing.

Satire Vocabulary Verbal Irony: a writer says one thing and means another Dramatic Irony: When the reader or audience knows something the character does not.

Example of Satire: “A Modest Proposal” Written in 1729 by Jonathan Swift. He believed England was exploiting Ireland. Many Irishmen worked farms owned by Englishmen who charged high rents–so high that the Irish were frequently unable to pay them. Consequently, many Irish farming families lived on the edge of starvation.

“A Modest Proposal” In “A Modest Proposal,” Swift satirizes the English landlords with outrageous humor, proposing that Irish infants be sold as food at age one, when they are plump and healthy, to give the Irish a new source of income and the English a new food product to bolster their economy and eliminate a social problem.

“A Modest Proposal” excerpts I have been told by a knowledgeable American that a year-old-infant is a “most delicious nourishing and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled. . . .” Therefore, I suggest that of the 120,000 new infants of poor parents, 20,000 be reserved for breeding and the rest be sold to people of quality.

Think about this… Why is “A Modest Proposal” an effective satire?