Download SATIRE

Do Now:
• Read “Facebook ‘satire’ tag could wipe
out Internet’s terrible hoax-news
industry”
• Answer:
– What does the article show us about the
difference between satire and “real” news?
– Where do the two overlap?
– Why do some people mistake satire for
straight news?
SATIRE
Keystone Pipeline
• Read articles.
• Answer the following:
– What knowledge is required to “get” the
jokes?
– How can even serious historical events be
rendered in humorous ways?
– Does the passage of time give us the
ability to joke about the past?
Affordable Care Act
• http://www.cc.com/video-clips/xd2lwm/thedaily-show-with-jon-stewart-the-weakestlink---a-few-glitches
• What elements of satire does Stewart use in
his critique?
• What are the differences between this clip’s
approach and The Onion article?
• What underlying attitudes do those
approaches reveal?
• Based on these two sources, do you think it is
possible for satire to be unbiased?
Satire
• A type of writing that ridicules an
individual, a group of people, a behavior
or attitude, or cultural or social
institution.
• Satire uses humor along with criticism
to make a point; moral aim: to inspire
reform.
• Satiric styles: Direct and Indirect
Satiric Types
• Horatian (light-hearted, intended for fun)
• Juvenalian (bitter, angry, attacking)
Direct Satire
• Stating direct criticism humorously.
• Dennis Miller’s Rants.
• The Death of Common Sense:
“You can’t get in your car and not run into
another idiot who pulls into the gas station with
his fuel tank on the wrong side and then has to
get instructions from NASA to figure out how to
maneuver his car so that the tank is on the
correct side. And you can’t open an paper without
reading about an idiot who gets hurt or killed at a
railroad crossing because they had to try to beat
the train to get home in time to watch Charlene
Tilton’s salute to porcelain clowns on QVC.”
Indirect Satire
• Communicated through characters in a
situation.
• Tools:
– Incongruity
– Irony
– Exaggeration/Understatement
– Reversal
– Parody/Caricature
Incongruity
• To present a thing that is out of place or is
absurd in relation to its surroundings.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXQTa
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Incongruity
Irony
• Irony exploits reader’s expectations; occurs
when what is expected turns out to be
different from what actually happens.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02LgdXVk
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Irony
• Verbal irony: an inversion in meaning; Ex.
words that praise to imply blame or blame to
imply praise.
• Dramatic irony: words or acts carry meaning
unperceived by character/speaker but
understood by the audience.
• Situational irony: discrepancy between
purpose and results (practical joke backfires).
• Socratic irony: feigning ignorance to achieve
advantage over an opponent (“Love is a Fallacy”).
Hyperbole/Exaggeration
• The portrayal of something trivial or unimportant
as very important in order to emphasize its
triviality.
• To enlarge, increase, or represent something
beyond normal bounds so that it becomes ridiculous
and its faults can be seen.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMChO0qNbkY
Hyperbole/Exaggeration
Understatement
• Presentation of something as being smaller,
worse, or less important than it actually is.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_HiX5eU
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Understatement
Reversal
• When the satirist uses or describes the
opposite of what he or she actually wants to
happen in order to make a point.
• From “Why I hate literature and why you
should too”
• “Books however are essentially faulty.
Literature is the worst of it, and if me and my
intelligent brethren don’t do something about
this horrible plague, who knows what could
become of our uneducated humans who read
these atrocities. ”
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zB7MichlL1
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Parody/Caricature
• A work of art/literature/film/song that mimics
another work, usually as a way of criticizing it.
• An exaggerated portrayal of the weaknesses,
frailties, or humorous aspects of an individual or
group.
• http://www.nbc.com/saturday-nightlive/video/weekend-update-ll-cool-j-and-bradpaisley/n35546
Possible Pitfalls of Satire
• Misunderstanding: Audience may think the
satirist is being serious
• Misuse: People hide behind the idea of
satire to get away with saying really stupid
and cruel things
• Missing the Point: Too much satire can
distract the audience from the “real”
message
When analyzing satire, consider:
• Subject: What is the main idea?
• Occasion: What current event/trend is the
author reacting to?
• Audience: What person/group is the satire
targeting?
• Purpose: What is the “real” message behind
the satire?
• Speaker: How does the author create
credibility? Why should we trust this person?