Satire in the Eighteenth Century Essay -- Literature Essays Literary C

Satire in the Eighteenth Century radical ideas, original thoughts, and fresh interpretations characterized the spirit of the eighteenth century. Science was flourishing, and therefore it brought new discoveries that challenged the traditional dominating force of religion. prestigious figures of the come on, such as Voltaire, Jonathan Swift, and William Hogarth, strove to assure serviceman betterment and advance human thinking through truth and humorous criticism. They employed the use of sarcasm in order to accomplish their common goal. According to A vade mecum of Literary Terms, satire is defined as a work or manner that blends a censorious attitude outlookh humor or wit for improving human institutions or humanity (Harmon and Holman 461). The New Princeton Encyclopedia of verse line and Poetics further asserts that satire is both a mode of discourse or vision that asserts polemical or critical outlook, and also a proper(postnominal) literary genre, embodying that mod e in either prose or verse (Preminger and brogue 1114). In essence, satire emerges as a device to successfully refer human faults and offer a cure for society. Satire often includes abuse, sarcasm, irony, mockery, exaggeration, and understatements. arguably Voltaires most famous work, Candide presents a string of characters laced in exaggeration. For example, the Barons brothel keeper was not only a large presence, but she weighed a striking three hundred and fifty pounds. Furthermore, the Barons castle was considered a monument of prestige, for his family line had a door and several windows and his hall was actually draped in tapestry (Voltaire 19). It is apparent that the use of the hyperbole, among other elements, played a polar role in the potency of satir... ...rs and improves judgment he that rectifies the public smack is a public benefactor (Preminger and Brogan 1115). The eighteenth century was a time of transformation, in which society was in constant evolution. T he progress of the age was delivered to the common persons doorstep through literature and art and reached the common persons apprehensiveness through satire. Hence, satire was both a furious weapon and a common medium that was utilized by the thinkers of the eighteenth century to elicit the Enlightenment. Works Cited Art of William Hogarth. 7 July 2000. Harmon, William and C. Hugh Holman. A Handbook of Literary Terms. New island of Jersey Prentice Hall, 1992. Preminger, Alex and T.V.F. Brogan, ed. The New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics. New Jersey Princeton University Press, 1993. Swift Biography. 8 July 2000.