Satire

What is satire?

Satire

"A literary work that ridicules its subject through the use of techniques such as exaggeration, reversal, incongruity, and/or parody in order to make a comment or criticism about it."

Before we looked to closely at satire and particular satiric techniques I had you jot down the genre-markers of fairy tales (Castle, "Along, long time ago in a land far, far away" etc.) We then examined a scene from a satiric fairytale - Shrek.

We viewed the fight scene from 'Shrek' where Robin Hood and his Merry Men attack Fiona and Shrek. After watching this scene you were asked to think of ways that the scene departed from a typical fairytale. Answers given included:

1. It was Fiona who protected Shrek and not vice-versa. Normally it is the hero that protects the princess.
2. Robin Hood and his Merry Men are normally portrayed as being the good guys.
3. There was a weird musical interlude/singing segment.

We then had a quick think about what the purpose of this scene was. Why portray events in this light? What point was the creator of the scene trying to make?

The subsequent discussions resulted in a consensus that it was commenting on gender stereotyping - the fact that women are usually portrayed as weak whereas men are the big, strong protectors.