Transcript Satire of Swift

Thursday, March 10
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Turn in Essay on Man discussion questions
Discuss Essay on Man
Enlightenment Literature: Satire
American Enlightenment & Birth of Economics
Homework:
 Read
Book 4, pages 118-121
 Read Swift’s A Modest Proposal (pages 119-121)
 Bring Book 4 tomorrow!
 Study for Vocab 11 Quiz
 Independent reading book
Satire: Weapon of the Enlightenment
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Satire as a weapon?
Discrepancies between reality and Enlightenment ideals
trigger protests and unrest.
Tool of social reformers to draw attention to contradictions
between:
 Morals
and manners, intentions and actions
 Enlightenment aspirations and contemporary injustice
Satire of Jonathon Swift (1667-1745)
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Irish
 Traveled
between Ireland
and England
 Fought hard for Irish
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Pessimistic view of human
nature
Gulliver’s Travels
A Modest Proposal (1729)
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Background:
 Ireland
is a British
colony
 Entirely dependant
 Land loss and
starvation
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Text mocked both
Ireland and England
Satire
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Horatian: playfully criticizes some social vice through gentle,
mild, and light-hearted humor. It directs wit, exaggeration, and
self-deprecating humor toward what it identifies as folly, rather
than evil.
Alexander Pope's The Rape of Locke
 The Onion, The Daily Show
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Juvenalian: more abrasive satire; addresses social evil
through scorn, outrage, and savage ridicule. This form is often
pessimistic, characterized by irony, sarcasm, moral indignation
and personal attack, with less emphasis on humor.
American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis
 A Modest Proposal by Jonathon Swift
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American Psycho
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Novel by Bret Easton Ellis,
1991
Movie starring Christian
Bale, 2000
Satirizing the 80s
 Consumerism
and
Conspicuous Consumption
 Superficiality – Nihilism
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Imagery
Hyperbole
Scenes from American Psycho
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I am Patrick Bateman (first scene)
Traditional Moral Values
Calling Cards
Mask of Sanity
Shooting Spree
No Catharsis (end scene)
Satire – Imagery and Hyperbole
American Psycho
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Examples of imagery
Examples of
hyperbole
How are they used to
support the satirical
argument?
A Modest Proposal
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What problem is
stated?
What is the author’s
solution to the problem?
How are imagery and
hyperbole used?
What emotions does it
evoke?
Please answer in your notes:
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What problem does Swift identify?
What solution does Swift propose?
Swift uses satire as a means of social reform. Based on
what we discussed in class and the reading, what aspects
of society is Swift satirizing?
 Cite
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examples from A Modest Proposal to support your answer.
In what ways is A Modest Proposal a good example of
Juvenalian satire?
 Juvenalian:
more abrasive satire; addresses social evil
through scorn, outrage, and savage ridicule. This form is often
pessimistic, characterized by irony, sarcasm, moral indignation
and personal attack, with less emphasis on humor.
Homework:
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Hamlet Essay due Monday
 Hard
copy in class
 Tunrnitin.com by Midnight
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Read textbook pages 160 - 166
Bring Book 4 to class on Monday