Definition and Examples of Satire – Literary terms

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Definition and Examples of Satire – Literary terms

Satire:  

A term used to describe any form of LITERATURE that blends ironic HUMOR and WIT with criticism for the purpose of ridiculing folly, vice, stupidity--the whole range of human foibles and frailties in individuals and institutions. Satire differs from COMEDY in that satire seeks to correct, improve, or reform through ridicule, while comedy aims simply to amuse. It differs from invective, direct denunciation or name-calling, and mere insult in the sharp wit of its presentation. If in MacFlecknoe John Dryden had called Thomas Shadwell "a dolt, a numskull," he would simply have been insulting. But when he wrote

Some beams of wit on other souls may fall,

Strike through, and make a lucid interval;

But Sh-'s genuine night admits no ray,

His rising fogs prevail upon the day

he was being satirical. (First political satire)

The tone of satire varies from light and witty chiding to passionate indignation to bitter denunciation. Its chief device is irony, the recognition of the incongruity that exists between appearance and reality. The satirist may, for example, praise a person for qualities he or she does not possess, present follies as highly desirable virtues, or use ironic understatement, as in Jonathan Swift's "Last week I saw a woman flayed, and you will hardly believe how much it altered her appearance.” In the MOCK EPIC, trivial situations and CHARACTERS are satirized by being treated in a lofty or heroic manner. Alexander Pope's Rape of the Lock is the classic example. Other satiric devices include sarcasm (personal taunts), innuendo (derogatory insinuations), burlesque, and parody (mimicking designed to ridicule), and caricature (ludicrous distortion of personal characteristics).

Read: Classification of Satire with Examples

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