2008 was an historic election year. Beyond the president-elect being the first African-American to be elected to office, the election was more heavily consumed by the media and by the general public than by any before. Through all sorts of different mediums, including the internet, television, and print, the campaigns and the media pushed information on the public. One of the largest ways this was done was via the art of satire. Satire, as defined by the dictionary, is, “The use of wit to criticize behavior.” Both political parties in the 2008 election had their share of material to make fun of the other’s candidate. Many critics of satire find it to be a waste of time, one which often masquerades as valid news.
This brings to mind Steven Johnson’s idea of a “sleeper curve” from his book Everything Bad is Good for You. In short, a “sleeper curve” is a term Johnson borrowed from the film Sleeper, where a man, frozen in 1973, is unfrozen in 2173 and refuses to eat cream pies and hot fudge on the premise that they are bad for him, even though they are proven to have nutritional merit by 2173. The “sleeper curve” refers to the idea that many things considered “bad” have benefits.
How can satire apply to this “sleeper curve” in the case of political satire? Simply put, satire is more interesting to a broader spectrum of people than almost any other form of communication. By creating satire, comedians can generate interest in the political process, something that otherwise would not compel many Americans. Of course, there are more benefits to satire than that. It not only creates interest, but it also brings a new or different viewpoint to light.
Nothing shows how satire can create interest better than the overwhelming acceptance o...
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Satire can be defined as any work in which a human vice or folly is attacked with irony or sarcasm. An example of satire can be found in the song "When the President Talks to God" by Bright Eyes. In this song, the lyrics lay out hypothetical conversations between the President and God, which mocks current President George W. Bush and his use of strong religious influence while in office.
Satire is a technique used in literature to criticize the faults of society. An excellent examle of contemporary satire is Kurt Vonnegut's novel God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater. The author tells the life of Eliot Rosewater, a young and affluent man troubled by the plights of the poor. Eliot is the President of the Rosewater Foundation, a sum of money worth approximately $87 million. Using this position, he does everything he can to help the poor. This charity giving is socially unacceptable to the wealthy, particularly Eliot's father Senator Lister Ames Rosewater. Vonnegut uses caricature, irony, and tone to satirize the lack of care the rich have for those socially "beneath them."
An example of satire that Kurt Vonnegut uses is when he designs the government of San Lorenzo. San Lorenzo is a small island somewhere in the Caribbean. The people in San Lorenzo are doomed to failure no matter what leader they have, and they have always been this way. San Lorenzo, in the novel, is pictured as one of the most unsuccessful and useless places on earth. The people there are very poor, do not have much to eat, and do not have any motivation left at all, "Johnson and McCabe had failed to raise the people from the misery and muck" (Scholes 133). Thus, that is why they do not care anymore who there leader is going to be, because they know that they are going to fail anyway, "Everybody was bound to fail, for San Lorenzo was as unproductive as an equal area i...
Political issues or matters concerning the well-being of mankind is not something new to us. Social and political hierarchies have existed for millennia, yet the ways in which people have voiced their concerns or opinions on sensitive topics related to these hierarchies have evolved over time. One way in which people have addressed important society matters has been through satire. Typically satirical writings are fueled by anger brought about by a political event or societal issue. Instead of voicing their anger directly to the people, Jonathan Swift and other satirical authors, have used satire as “the engine of anger, rather than the direct expression of anger” (Egendorf 40). In doing so,
The artists behind the cartoons more than likely would not openly say what they put into their cartoons. They are shielded by their comical art, which allows them to share their full and true opinion in the form of humorful art. If the artist openly expressed their thoughts like they do in their cartoons in public, they might be looked down upon by their peers, or even end up fighting with their peers over which opinion is correct. With the help of comical drawings, people are able to express their opinions freely, and without the worry of others opinions. It shows that lightening up the mood through humor is something that can help to make the idea more acceptable or drive the audience to be more open to what to what the author or artist is trying to say. The importance of humor when it comes to politics is a great one. Humor in politics is almost a necessity when you want to keep from a major argument over controversial topics, yet there is a time and place for the humor to be used. If used in the right time and place the humor can be almost unrecognizable, but will still do its job of lightening the
Satire is a great tool used by many writers and actors since ancient times. The earliest example that we know about is a script from 2nd millennium BC in Ancient Egypt (Definition: Satire) and since then has evolved into a great part of our society. Satire is used to point out the faults of human vice in order for change and reform in either of two ways. There is a very bitter Juvenalian or a mild and light Horatian. In order to fully understand these forms of satire, method, purpose, and applications will be addressed.
Satire is customarily discussed as “humor critiquing current political or social issues. For example, the Oxford English Dictionary defines satire as the type of derisive humor or irony; mocking wit; sarcasm especially employed against something perceived as foolish or immoral.” While the Oxford English Dictionary’s emphasis on humor calls attention to the mockery of these issues, it does not present the consequences of certain actions. In the Onion article titled “Underfunded Schools Forced to Cut Past Tense From Language Programs” and The Simpsons episode “Two Cars in Every Garage and Three Eyes on Every Fish, satire also addresses the effects of certain decisions on society. Attending to the consequences of the actions or decisions that are being satirized allows us to see how satire can help us come to
The book Thank You for Arguing has made a huge impact on how I argue not only in my essays, but in real life situations as well. I have enjoyed learning about the different fallacies or, as Heinrichs calls them, the “Seven deadly logical sins”, how to spot them, and where they are found the most. Although I have loved learning about rhetoric and fallacies, my favorite lesson by far has been the satire unit. I enjoy looking to see if someone's speech or essay is presented in satire form and how to differentiate between the speaker and author; I believe knowledge of satire to be an effective way of arguing and understanding other people's arguments. As much as i love learning satire, I always have trouble seeing if the passage is satire, and what the speaker is saying as opposed to the author. Rhetoric and satire can prove to be two crucial parts in arguing effectively and have both helped me immensely in shaping my
For example, the comedy shows The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon expresses satirical humor concerning politics. His show also demonstrates political satire by telling jokes and even impersonating political figures for the audience. He creates humor through sarcasm that focuses on real issues. His sarcastic humor causes others to feel more confident in their criticism toward politicians. For example, “Jimmy Fallon expresses his humor about Donald Trump, impersonating his appearance and imitating his voice while talking about politics. He uses his humor by impersonating Donald Trump and his sweeping generalizations with Madea (Rogo).” Jimmy Fallon shows people his views through humor and it creates a sense of community to express their agreeable and disagreeable views. As we discussed some ideas about satirical humor that affects political changes, it was important to reveal their feelings about changes in life and drove them to look upon their society or government more
While the tone may range from playful to angry, satire generally criticizes in order to make a change. Exaggeration, parody, reversal, and incongruity are satirical devices. Author’s use satirical devices to strengthen their central idea.
According to Everything’s an Argument by Andrea A. Lunsford and John J. Ruszkiewicz, “Humor has always played an important role in argument…” (38). Humor itself is something that activates amusement or laughter. Moreover, in popular culture satire is a tool that is used to point out things in our society. Satire opens the minds of people to philosophies they might completely deny, using humor. There are many elements of satire that identify flaws within our society. A couple of satire elements that will be discussed are irony and exaggeration. In addition, a parody is used in popular culture as a way to mock or mimic situation or person.
This essay by Jeff Jacoby illustrates an authors use of ironic sarcasm otherwise known as satire to defend and illustrate his platform on his position. Jacoby uses in this essay verbal irony (persuasion in the form of ridicule). In the irony of this sort there is a contrast between what is said and what is meant.
James Conroy argues that laughter in serious topics has been regarded through the ages as dangerous, deviant, and subversive; yet equally as refreshing, challenging, and constructive. Political humor is extensively used in almost all countries, but political satire is perceived differently from one country to another. The research question is as follows: what factors make political satire an effective tool that affects politics and policy? I argue that humor is more influential when blended with serious topics, such as international relations or politics. Laughter is a great means to put serious topics under the lenses of critical thinking. The use of humor, and political satire specifically can bring about serious political change. Humor can play all sorts of roles in the political process through being informative, educational and influential while keeping its captive entertaining
Satire is defined as “the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people’s stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues” (Oxford). The best satirical writers can make the readers believe that an idea is “logical and practical.” This is seen in great abundance in Aldous Huxley’s novel, Brave New World. Through his writing, Huxley uses satire to effectively point out the flaws of society at the time. Even though Brave New World was written in 1931, the satirical points Huxley makes are still relevant in today’s world.
From the beginning days of the printing press to the always evolving internet of present day, the media has greatly evolved and changed over the years. No one can possibly overstate the influential power of the new media of television on the rest of the industry. Television continues to influence the media, which recently an era of comedic television shows that specialize in providing “fake news” has captivated. The groundbreaking The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and its spin-off The Colbert Report have successfully attracted the youth demographic and have become the new era’s leading political news source. By parodying news companies and satirizing the government, “fake news” has affected the media, the government, and its audience in such a way that Bill Moyers has claimed “you simply can’t understand American politics in the new millennium without The Daily Show,” that started it all (PBS).