What is Satire?
Satire is the use of humor, irony, sarcasm, or ridicule to criticize something or someone. Public figures, such as politicians, are often the subject of satire, but satirists can take aim at other targets as well—from societal conventions to government policies. Satire is often used to point out foolishness in the political arena, or in relation to government policy.
Satire occurs in many forms: there are satirical novels, poems, and essays, as well as satirical films, shows, and cartoons.
Types of Satire
Horatian
Juvenalian
Menippean
Horatian Satire:
Horatian satire, named for the Roman satirist Horace (65–8 BCE), playfully criticizes some social vice through gentle, mild, and light-hearted humour. It is more witty and tolerant.
A Horatian satirist’s goal is to heal the situation with smiles, rather than by anger. Horatian satire is a gentle reminder to take life less seriously and evokes a wry smile. A Horatian satirist makes fun of general human folly rather than engaging in specific or personal attacks.
Examples Of Horatian Satire :
“Gulliver’s Travels” is an example of Horatian satire. Gulliver takes four different voyages and encounters four strange lands. In each, Swift is attempting to satirize some aspect of English society. For example, when Gulliver is in Lilliput, he learns that people are appointed to office based on their ability to walk a tightrope. He is satirizing the way that the English nobility of his day chose based on bloodlines and connection to the court.
Another example is Alexander Pope’s poem “The Rape of the Lock”. It gently mocks the English upper class for its vanity and dim-wittedness.
Click here to continue: https://www.myschoolblog.com.ng/the-three-types-of-satire/
