Satire
“HARRISON BERGERON”
KURT VONNEGUT
Definition
 What is Satire?
Definition
 Satire—any kind of writing, speaking, or art that
ridicules some weakness in individuals or society.
Vehicles of Satire
 Art
 Music
 Poetry/Prose
 Drama/TV
 Cartoons
Brainstorming
 Create a list of some elements of our society (political
or social) that may be or have been satirized:
Music
 Weird Al Yankovic

“You’re Pitiful” satirizes the song “You’re Beautiful” by James
Blunt
Prose
 George Orwell
Television
 Saturday Night Live
Cartoon
Stylistic Devices of Satire
 Hyperbole: A figure of speech that uses exaggeration
to emphasize strong feelings or to create a satiric effect
 Understatement: The technique of creating emphasis
by saying less than what is actually or literally true
 Sarcasm: a type of verbal irony often in the form of a
remark in which the literal meaning is complimentary but
the actual meaning is critical
 Verbal Irony: words of praise which convey criticism
and words of criticism which convey praise
“Harrison Bergeron”
 Quickwrite:
Think about the pressure you or students in your
school might feel to be “the same”—to act, think, or
dress the same way others do. Do you think the
pressure to be the same comes from outside forces or
from personal desires? Do you think being the same
makes most people happy, or would they really
prefer to act on their own? Jot down your thoughts.
History of Satire
 Started in ancient Greece
 Roman Empire- Horace and Juvenal:
 criticized Roman’s decadence.
 “Golden Age”- 17th and 18th century Jonathan Swift
 19th century- went into decline besides
 some exceptions like Mark Twain
Characteristics of Satire
 Attempts to bring about change through
 humor
 Often targets social or political
 institutions
 Uses irony and exaggeration
 Typically attacks hypocrisy, arrogance,
 greed, vanity, etc.
Types of Satire
 Horatian Satire- playful and
 gentle humor. Ex- The Rape of
 the Lock
 Juvenalian Satire- Dark, bitter,
 scornful
 Ex- Jonathan Swift