Political Satire Essay

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Jessica Bloustein states: “as long as there have been people in power, there have been wiseacres mocking people in power.” Since Aristophanes’ playwrights, political satire continued to be exercised in different regions in the world. This genre of comedy took various forms over the ages. For example, the Romans inherited the use of mockery against their leaders from the Greeks. Nauta mentions that Seneca the Younger (1 BCE- 65 AD) was one of the earliest yet prolific satirists during the Roman Empire. Seneca’s Apolocynotosis is a satirist work that tells of the death and deification of Emperor Claudius. Nauta states that when Emperor Claudius died, many Roman intellectuals started writing of a noble emperor who died in a tragic death, elevating…show more content…
The political systems in Europe up to the French Revolution saw the vast mass of the population suffer from misery and poverty. Rulers at that time were considered as oppressive, as they failed to provide the stability and peace of the Roman Empire. The feudal system served the powerful rulers at the expense of the peasants. As a result, social discontent was often expressed indirectly through attacks against the church. Subsequently over time, Political criticism was often masked by anti-clerical polemic and…show more content…
It became more accessible in films. Filmmakers incorporated the act of satire in the early 20th century. For instance, iconic actor and filmmaker, Charlie Chaplin was known for his movie, “The Great Dictator (1940),” in which he satirized the German Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler. Jaffe argues that while Chaplin has long been known for his silent movies, he decided to finally speak for the first time in a movie to ridicule the worst dictator of the 20th century. Jaffe claims that Chaplin’s satire in the movie “The Great Dictator” was constructive containing with a solid message for all, which is that “the hate of men will pass and dictators die, and the power they took from people will return to the
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