Satire serves many roles in society, the obvious being humor. However, it is also serves a much greater purpose in that it sometimes is utilized to better humanity and the establishments that exist within our society. To accomplish this greater task, satirical literature lures an audience by directing attention to aspects of a person or object that people dislike. By ridiculing the person or object with humor, it alleviates tensions and elicits a more receptive audience to the material. In essence, satire, makes it easier to say the harsh opinions that everyone is thinking but is too afraid to say out loud. And it is the the satirist’s duty to exaggerate and clarify the hidden truths so they are easier to live with and understand.
Many people use the word “satire” interchangeably with “parody”. Yet, parodies are more specifically compositions that imitate or mock a certain style of the object they are making fun of. Satire has a broader definition of using “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” (google). In today’s society, satire has played a big role in easing the harsh realities of politics and the revealing the sleazy politician’s actions and lies. The long history and functions satire has played amongst humanity, has led satirical humor to where it is today.
In the 7th century BCE, satire began to have impact on society and Greek poets such as Aristophanes, wrote plays commenting on societal and political mannerisms. The humorous plays existed before the word “satire” existed. The word “satire” originated from the Latin word “satura”. And the two different types of satire, Horatian and Juvenalian are named after Horace and Juvenal. Horatian satire is usually a clever and witty wordplay whereas Juvenalian satire is known for being unsympathetic in ridicule and mockery, a darker humor. After the Roman satirists, there was a break during the Dark Ages millennia. Satire reappeared in the medieval late 14th century, and was prominent in the Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales that made light of contemporary English society. The Spanish Miguel De Cervantes’ Don Quixote satirized the romanticized lives of traditional chivalry. And when the renaissance and neoclassical movement arrived, poets such as, John Donne and Ben Johnson, were keen to satire’s ability to simultaneously criticize yet entertain the population. Authors found satire useful in terms of exposing religion and spirituality and as it progressed throughout the generations, writers began taking the genre even further to where we are today.
It is evident throughout humanities’ history, that human nature uses comedy to make light of difficult situations and bring tough realities to the surface. With the help of satire, we are able to laugh at our pain and not take life too seriously. Without satire, we would all go throughout our lives with chips on our shoulders. Politics has always been an uncomfortable and tense topic. This past election, in particular, was filled with a great amount of drama, fighting, lies, and below the belt jabs. Most of the time, it felt as though the candidates’ focus was on finding dirt on one another rather than on steps they could each take to enhance and grow our nation. The election campaign was treacherous and at the end of the day the only aspect that seemed to pull me through to the end was the comedic coverage.
Citations: Google Images. Google, n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2017. What's the difference between parody and satire? N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Mar. 2017. Reimann, Matt. "Blogis librorum. A blog about books. Rare books." A Brief History of Satire. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Mar. 2017. Study.com. Study.com, n.d. Web. 24 Mar. 2017.