UFG+How-to-Jameson

UFG How-to – Satirical Essay

· Find source of outrage (human vice, folly).

 o Shouldn’t be hard if you watch, listen to, or read the news. It’s best to settle on an issue that is societal rather than individual although it’s certainly ok to point to an individual case as an example of the overall.

 o It’s important to remember that good satire exposes immoral, unethical conduct, and then makes it look ridiculous in order to dissuade others from acting that way.

· Take the outrage that you wish to rail against and follow its logic to its absurd conclusions.

 o For example, if we wish to satirize a politician who proposes “a colony on the moon” you could create a number of absurd scenarios from the imaginary moon colony he has proposed.

 o At this point it is a good idea for the writer to outline the argument that they wish to attack, as well as some of the ways that they wish to attack it.

· Now that you know the position you will be attacking and how you’ll do so you should pick the structure your satire will take.

 o Monologue: The writer basically states her view of the problem, uses examples, and tries to impose their views on the reader. Often they take on the persona of the person or position they are attacking.

 o Parody: Often used to poke fun at (satirize) someone’s work, by mimicking the form of it while making slight changes to make it look silly.

 o Narrative: Tells a story, without much narration, usually using a vivid imagining of a situation in which the position being attacked looks foolish and unethical.

· The next step is coming up with a witty and humorous title.

 o This step could be moved to the end of the guide, but it often helps me stay on topic when I’ve already thought of one.

 o For a good example of this think of Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” in which the proposal is anything but modest.

· Now it’s time to write the essay.

 o There are several techniques that can be employed here, and a number should be used to keep the essay interesting.

<span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;">§ Reduction: reducing a sign of symbol to simple terms. (e.g. a flag becomes a piece of cloth that isn’t worth dying over)

<span style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.5in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;">§ Invective: open insults, used sometimes for shock value, but should be used scarcely since it can make the writer look like a overly biased jerk.

<span style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.5in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;">§ Irony: basically, a meaning in opposition to its literal meaning. This usually figures prominently is a satirical essay.

<span style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.5in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;">§ Caricature: exaggeration for comic effect.

<span style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.5in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;">§ Burlesque: exaggeration in language.

<span style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.5in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level3 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Wingdings; mso-fareast-font-family: Wingdings;">§ Reductio ad absurdum: the author agrees with the basic attitudes being satirized and pushes them to illogical, ridiculous extremes.

<span style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"> o Don’t forget to use a variety of techniques.

<span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;">· The essay need not have a rigidly defined structure, although it makes sense to do the following as a minimum:

<span style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"> o Introduction: introduce the issue.

<span style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"> o Body: attack the issue using some of the techniques from above along with characteristics common in satire (paradox, antithesis, vividness, hyperbole, etc.)

<span style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;"> o Conclusion: conclude the essay.

· Edit and be sure that you’ve used intelligence and wit throughout. If the essay looks like a boring, diatribe against a position that doesn’t look ridiculous you’ve done something wrong.

<span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> UFG How-to – Satirical Essay <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">1. Find source of outrage (human vice, folly). <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">a. Shouldn’t be hard if you watch, listen to, or read the news. It’s best to settle on an issue that is societal rather than individual although it’s certainly ok to point to an individual case as an example of the overall. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">b. It’s important to remember that good satire exposes immoral, unethical conduct, and then makes it look ridiculous in order to dissuade others from acting that way. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">2. Take the outrage that you wish to rail against and follow its logic to its absurd conclusions. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">a. For example, if we wish to satirize a politician who proposes “a colony on the moon” you could create a number of absurd scenarios from the imaginary moon colony he has proposed. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">b. At this point it is a good idea for the writer to outline the argument that they wish to attack, as well as some of the ways that they wish to attack it. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">3. Now that you know the position you will be attacking and how you’ll do so you should pick the structure your satire will take. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">a. Monologue: The writer basically states her view of the problem, uses examples, and tries to impose their views on the reader. Often they take on the persona of the person or position they are attacking. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">b. Parody: Often used to poke fun at (satirize) someone’s work, by mimicking the form of it while making slight changes to make it look silly. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">c. Narrative: Tells a story, without much narration, usually using a vivid imagining of a situation in which the position being attacked looks foolish and unethical. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">4. The next step is coming up with a witty and humorous title. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">a. This step could be moved to the end of the guide, but it often helps me stay on topic when I’ve already thought of one. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">b. For a good example of this think of Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” in which the proposal is anything but modest. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">5. Now it’s time to write the essay. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">a. There are several techniques that can be employed here, and a number should be used to keep the essay interesting. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.5in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -1.5in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> i. Reduction: reducing a sign of symbol to simple terms. (e.g. a flag becomes a piece of cloth that isn’t worth dying over) <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.5in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -1.5in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> ii. Invective: open insults, used sometimes for shock value, but should be used scarcely since it can make the writer look like a overly biased jerk. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.5in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -1.5in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> iii. Irony: basically, a meaning in opposition to its literal meaning. This usually figures prominently is a satirical essay. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.5in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -1.5in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> iv. Caricature: exaggeration for comic effect. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.5in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -1.5in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> v. Burlesque: exaggeration in language. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1.5in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -1.5in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> vi. Reductio ad absurdum: the author agrees with the basic attitudes being satirized and pushes them to illogical, ridiculous extremes. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">b. Don’t forget to use a variety of techniques. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">6. The essay need not have a rigidly defined structure, although it makes sense to do the following as a minimum: <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">a. Introduction: introduce the issue. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">b. Body: attack the issue using some of the techniques from above along with characteristics common in satire (paradox, antithesis, vividness, hyperbole, etc.) <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; margin-left: 1in; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">c. Conclusion: conclude the essay. <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; line-height: normal; overflow: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"> <span style="font-family: 'Georgia','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">7. Edit and be sure that you’ve used intelligence and wit throughout. If the essay looks like a boring, diatribe against a position that doesn’t look ridiculous you’ve done something wrong. == You show a good range of possibilities in satire, but I think your genres are in conflict when you call it an "essay," while giving "monologue" and "narrative" as examples of format. You also assume a logical argument, but satire often spurns logic by exaggeration, such as "reductio ad absurdem." Ridicule and logic make strange bedfellows. ==