Elements of Satire

Mrs. SikoraAmerican Literature

Here are the elements we need to make satire!

• Verbal irony and sarcasm• Tragic or dramatic irony• Situational irony• ___________________________• Hyperbole• Paronomasia• Simile, metaphor• ___________________________

What is satire?

• Satire: a manner of writing that mixes a critical attitude with ______________________ in an effort to ____________________ humankind and human institutions. Satire uses irony and other related rhetorical devices to cause the desired effect.

What is irony?

• Irony: the use of words to express something _____________________________________ their literal meaning; an expression or utterance marked by a deliberate contrast between apparent and intended meaning.

I. Verbal Irony• Verbal irony is the use of words

________________________________, and especially the opposite to, the literal meaning of the words, to emphasize, to aggrandize, or to make light of a circumstance or subject:

A man stares out a window looking at a miserably muddy rainy day and remarks, “Lovely day for a stroll.” This remark is ironic because it expresses the opposite of the circumstances.

II. Tragic or Dramatic Irony• Tragic irony or dramatic irony heightens

the suspense in a given situation.• In this form of irony the words and

actions of the characters, unbeknownst to them, ____________________________________________________________. – An example is in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet when

Romeo commits suicide after he believes Juliet to be dead.

– The audience knows Juliet is not actually dead, but Romeo does not know.

III. Situational Irony• Situational irony occurs in literature and

in drama when persons and events come together in ____________________________, creating a tension between expected and real results:

In “Contents of the Dead Man’s Pockets”, Tom spends the entire story trying to retrieve from the edge of his building a piece of yellow paper with job research on it. He risks his life for the piece of paper…

III. Situational Irony Cont’d Once Tom successfully retrieves the

paper, Tom is about to leave his apartment to meet his wife at the movies WHEN…

The paper drifts out the window again! And Tom doesn’t care this time!

This is ironic because it is the _________________ of what is expected. Tom doesn’t expect the paper to float out the window again. We, the readers, don’t expect him to react the way he does the second time around.

IV. Understatement

• A form of irony in which something is intentionally represented as __________ than it is:

“Hank Aaron was a pretty good ball player.”

V. Hyperbole

• A figure of speech in which exceptional _________________________ is deliberately used for emphasis rather than deception:

“I am so tired that I feel dead.”

VI. Paronomasia

• A form of __________________ or playing with words using the same word or similar-sounding words:

“Your children need your presence more than your presents” (Jesse Jackson).

VII. Similes and Metaphors

Give an example of a simile using the word “tree.”

Remember: ______________

Give an example of a metaphor using the word “basketball.”

VII. Oxymoron

• A rhetorical figure in which incongruous or ______________________ terms are combined:

• authentic reproduction • boneless ribs• inside out• liquid gas• no comment • organized chaos Can you think of others?

Next, we take the elements of satire to create these bigger effects…

• Exaggeration• Incongruity• ______________________• Reversal

Exaggeration

• To enlarge, increase, or represent something beyond normal bounds so that it becomes __________________ and its ______________ can be seen.

Exaggeration cont.

• 1. ____________________ is the exaggeration of a physical feature or trait. Cartoons, especially political cartoons, provide extensive examples of caricature.

Exaggeration cont.

• 2. _______________________ is the ridiculous exaggeration of language. For instance, when a character who should use formal, intelligent language speaks like a fool or a character who is portrayed as uneducated uses highly sophisticated, intelligent language.

Incongruity

• To present things that are _____________________ or are absurd in relation to their surroundings.

Particular elements include oxymoron, metaphor, and irony.

Parody

• To ________________ the techniques and/or style of some person, place, or thing in order to ridicule the original. For parody to be successful, the reader must _________ the original text that is being ridiculed.

Reversal

• To present the ________________ of the normal order.

1. Reversal can focus on the the order of events, such as serving dessert before the main dish or having breakfast for dinner.

Reversal Cont’d.

• 2.Reversal can focus on ____________________ order—for instance, when a young child makes all the decisions for a family or when an administrative assistant dictates what the company president decides and does.