Satire is a technique in art and literature that pokes fun at established norms. The different genres include parody, Horatian and Juvenal satire. Parody is based on a particular work, while parodies send entire genres. Satirists use their craft for social commentary, comedy or both. The Simpsons uses humor to critique society, while South Park directly attacks celebrities, trends and popular beliefs. Mel Brooks’ films offer astute critiques of racial and social conventions. Harvey Kurtzman’s Mad Magazine inspired later satirists of all genres. Monty Python and Saturday Night Live maintain long traditions of parody and social satire.
Satire is a technique in art and literature that makes fun of established artistic or cultural norms. Satirists ply their trade for the love of social commentary, comedy, or often both. The different genres of satire include parody, parody, and classical literary satire techniques. These techniques, traditionally called Horatian and Juvenal satire, have been practiced for hundreds of years. The genres of parody and parody satire have been particularly successful in modern times.
The Horatian and Juvenal satire takes its name from two early Roman poets, Horace and Juvenal. Horace was inclined to deliver playful comedy that invited his subjects to laugh at themselves; Juvenal tended towards a biting satire that directly accused public figures of corruption or hypocrisy. The art of parody was introduced by ancient Greek playwrights such as Hegemon and Aristophanes. Aristophanes, like many satirists, employed various genres of satire at different times. His play The Frogs is a veritable parody of other playwrights such as Euripides, while Lysistrata is a lively Horace satire of the warlike ways of Greece.
Horace’s satire, with its indirect approach and penchant for comedy, is often favored by satirists because it is rarely seen as a direct attack on society. While satire is a protected form of free speech in the United States and elsewhere, many other nations do not offer these protections. Even in the United States, direct criticism of American society can sometimes provoke controversy. The TV series The Simpsons usually avoids such conflict by expressing its social critique in humor. South Park, on the other hand, is purely juvenile, directly attacking celebrities, trends and popular beliefs with a very sharp wit, and usually enjoying the ensuing controversy.
The terms “parody” and “parody” are often used interchangeably. When a distinction is made for these two genres of satire, parody is based on a particular work, while parodies send entire genres. Mel Brooks is a master of parody; his films Spaceballs and Young Frankenstein satirize science fiction and horror genres. There is little social commentary in these films; Brooks’ intent was simply to have a few laughs. Other Brooks films, such as Blazing Saddles and The Producers, offer astute critiques of racial and social conventions, qualifying as Horace satire.
One of the pioneers of modern parody was cartoonist Harvey Kurtzman, who launched Mad Magazine in 1952. His parodies of popular culture and entertainment were socially relevant simply because there was nothing else like them in the conformist 1950s. Kurtzman inspired many later satirists of all genres of satire, including the underground cartoonists of the 1960s. The English troupe Monty Python and the American television series Saturday Night Live were also inspired by Kurtzman’s work. Both have maintained long traditions of parody, parody and more direct social satire.
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