Satire
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Satire was used long ago, even as long ago as the Ancient Greeks. It was widely known in Elizabethan times. Swift used satire in his book Gulliver’s Travels to make fun of people’s stupidity. Works like The Beggar’s Opera (1728) used satire to show how silly the politicians of the time were. In modern times the German playwright Bertolt Brecht used a lot of satire in his plays.
Satire is not possible under dictatorships. It was not allowed, for example, in the Soviet Union. Anyone trying to make fun of Stalin would have been put to death immediately.
Satire often points out bad things that powerful people are doing, but may also harm disadvantaged or nonfamous people like you and me. The adjective is satirical.
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