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Satire Impact on Society Essay Example

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Satire Impact on Society Essay Example
Satire should, like a polished razor keen, Wound with a touch that's scarcely felt or seen.

Satire is a literary manner which blends a critical attitude with humor and wit to the end that human institutions or humanity may be improved. The true satirist is conscious of the frailty of institutions of man's devising and attempts through laughter not so much to tear them down as to inspire a remodeling

The best satire does not seek to do harm or damage by its ridicule, unless we speak of damage to the structure of vice, but rather it seeks to create a shock of recognition and to make vice repulsive so that the vice will be expunged from the person or society under attack or from the person or society intended to benefit by the attack (regardless of who is the immediate object of attack); whenever possible this shock of recognition is to be conveyed through laughter or wit.

Many texts use satire as a technique to attract an auidience. Movies, Cartoons, And Musicians all use satire successfully. Some satirical texts include:

Scary Movie - Exaggerates the techniques used by horror movies to scare the responder
Austin Powers – Sexism Towards Women, Ridicules escapes of the spy and stupidity of the evil villain.
This is Spinal Tap – The Excess of Modern Musicians
Songs by Weird Al - The Excess of Modern Musicians, simplicity and immaturity in lyrics of modern music.

The most frequently used satirical techniques are irony, sarcasm, burlesque, and parody. Irony is a technique in which the attitudes stated differ from what is really meant. For example, words of praise can be used to imply blame. A Modest Proposal is one of the most effective and savage examples of sustained ironic tone in English literature.

Sarcasm is more caustic, crude, and heavy-handed than irony, of which it is a form. Sarcasm also tends to be more personally directed than irony.

Burlesque is an imitation of a person or subject which, by ridiculous exaggeration or distortion,

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