In no more than 1550 and no less than 1450 words, answer ONE of the following questions: 1. ‘We...

Question

In no more than 1550 and no less than 1450 words, answer ONE of the following questions:
1. ‘We might recognize satire as an intervention in a public arena of discourse, an activity that
ings people together (and pushes others away) to create a “public” or a dissenting “counterpublic”.’ (Jonathan Greenberg)
Discuss the way in which one or two of the literary satires set for Module One intervenes in the public sphere, with a particular focus on how it
ings some people together and pushes others away.
2. ‘Whiteness for the majority of “white” people is so unmarked that in their eyes, it does not actually function as a racial or ethnic identity.’ (Steve Garner)
With reference to Hughes’s ‘Slave on the Block’ and/or Parker’s ‘A
angement in Black and White’, discuss the way in which the autho
s use satire to ‘mark’ and critique whiteness. Your answer should consider the social context and circumstances in which each was published.
3. ‘A satire may attack clear and specific historical material, but […] the pleasure provided by the virtuosity the satirist has displayed in attack are the reasons we continue to read satires long after their immediate target has been forgotten.’ (Charles Knight)
Discuss the pleasures of satire with reference to one or two of the literary satires set for Module One.
4. ‘Honoured members of the Academy!’ (Franz Kafka)
How does Red Peter’s address to a learned audience in Kafka’s ‘A Report to an Academy’ satirise the ideals of civilised culture?
5. ‘[Carter’s approach to the fairy tale] participates in the aesthetic of the grotesque and inflects the grotesque in a specifically feminine and feminist way, maximising its potential as an instrument of social and personal transformation’ (Betty Moss)
Discuss ‘The Bloody Chamber’ as an example of the ‘female grotesque’. How does Carter’s transformation of the fairy tale point to the possibility of social transformation?
6. ‘Satire demands at least a token fantasy, a content which the reader recognizes as grotesque, and at least an implicit moral standard.’ (Northrop Frye)
2
Discuss the satiric techniques used in one or two of the literary satires in Module One in terms of their implicit moral standard or norm.
7. “Satire combines, inhabits, or transforms other genres. It mixes subject matter, linguistic registers, and literary traditions.” (Jonathan Greenberg)
Discuss one or two of the literary satires in Module One in terms of how it inhabits and transforms another genre.
GUIDELINES
- The Essay assesses your response to and understanding of the essential texts set for Module One (Satire: weeks 2-5) as well as the ideas and concepts introduced in the lectures and supplementary readings. Your essay should situate your close reading of the literary text in a historical and critical context that engages with the themes of the module.
- Double-space your essays and ensure that the margins are wide enough to give room for comments.
- You must provide a word count at the end of your essay.
- Your essay must include at least ONE reference (preferably more) to a relevant supplementary reading OR a relevant secondary or critical text. This includes books and peer-reviewed articles but not unreferenced Internet sources and study guides.
- References should follow the Chicago or MLA system (or any other system so long as it is used consistently). (Please see the Lecture and Assessment Outline on vUWS for details. There will be no allowances for plagiarism.)
- The following are the literary satires set for Module 1: Langston Hughes, ‘Slave on the Block’; Dorothy Parker, ‘A
angement in Black and White’; Franz Kafka, ‘A Report to an Academy’; Angela Carter, ‘The Bloody Chamber’.
CRITERIA
− _Write clear and well-structured paragraphs.
− _Use descriptive and analytical terms accurately.
− _Demonstrate an understanding of core unit themes and concepts.
− _Engage with primary and secondary texts.
− _Sustain an argument in response to the question.

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Shreyashi · Accepted Answer

2
A Satire is a genre of literature, which is usually fictional. The term Satire has been derived from the Latin term satur and the ensuing phrase lanx satura. The term satur originally means “full” but the when it’s placed with lanx, the meaning becomes “miscellany or medley”.  Satires are written with the intention to shame individuals, the government or the society itself by using abuses, idiocy, flaws and ridicule. Even though satires are usually supposed to be humorous, they serve as a means to generate social criticism by using the tool “wit”. The most frequently and excessively used feature in a satire is strong irony or sarcasm. Parody, humor, exaggeration, comic juxtaposition, comparison, inflation, grotesque, understatement and diminution are some of the common features, used while penning down a satire. In a broad and modern context, satires can be found in many artistic forms; including internet memes, literature, plays, television shows, commentary and media. 
Quintilian was the first Roman to discuss Satire critically. He invented the term in order to describe and study the works of Gaius Lucilius. The beginning of the tradition of writing Satires began as early as 7th century B.C.E.; people then were getting affected by the use of satires. The Greek poet Archilocchus criticized an entire family, which made them commit suicide. Greek authors like him and Aristophanes built the foundation of Western Comedy. Horace and Juvenal are regarded as the greatest Satirist of all the time. Till date, the Satires are classified mostly into two categories, Horatian and Juvenalian. 
Even though Satires were originally written to criticize or mock the targeted person(s), it’ll be a lie to assume that Satires do not provide pleasure when studied as a piece of literature. The humorous writings serve the genre of comic and they also provide us with a better understanding of the time they were written in. As already elaborated, the main intention behind writing a Satire is to sarcastically criticize a person or a group of people. Satires were sometimes practiced to politically criticize the Government or people belonging to a certain ideology. By studying certain Satires, we can briefly understand the political scenario of the particular time period. Satires also give us an idea about the social scene of a given time frame, how the people had their differences and the ongoing social clashes. In Horace’s Satires, we find about how he felt about the then society. His book “Satires and Epistles” clearly describes about how the social structure was back then. In Satire 2 of his book, he speaks about “folly” as opposed to “good sense in sexual relation”. None of the English commentators ever print more than the first twenty-eight lines of the satire. From his Satire, we can have an understanding on how sexual relationships were looked at back then. In his Satire 7, Davus;

In no more than 1550 and no less than 1450 words, answer ONE of the following questions: 1. ‘We might recognize satire as an intervention in a public arena of discourse, an activity that brings people...

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