A Reflection On Satire

A Reflection on Satire
While experiencing any type of literature, whether it is reading a novel, news article, or even viewing a movie, it is common for many to overlook or mistake the use of satire for comedy. Satire is utilized within all types of literature to make commentary on society or social situations through the use of comedy or humor (Andrzejewski). There are many devices of satire that an author can take advantage of, one of the most common being parodies. A parody is an imitation of a specific, known person, literary work, movie, or event (Andrzejewski). They can be considered jokes, as they poke fun at what the author view’s as wrong with the original piece of work or situation. Parodies have been extremely prominent throughout

In book one of Gulliver’s Travels, “A Voyage to Lilliput”, Swift created two separate political parties; the High Heels and the Low Heels. He created these parties as a parody of the Tories and the Whigs, the two political parties that dominated England at that time. By utilizing the high and low heel concept, Swift conveyed his opinions on how ridiculous he thought that the political parties were. He continued the parody by corresponding the events that took place in the story between the High Heels and the Low Heels with real-life events that occured between the Tories and the Whigs. In the novel, the High Heels parodied the Tories and the Low Heels parodied the Whigs, however, he also helps to convey his messages about these political parties through his characters: the Lilliputians, who resemble the Whigs, and Gulliver, who resembles the Tories. Swift utilizes the details of The War of Spanish Succession to create similarities between the two political parodies. In Gulliver’s Travels, the Lilliputians come off as intense, explosive, and ready to destroy anyone that steps in their way. While on the other hand, Gulliver is shown to be a happy-go-lucky man who is willing to reason with the enemy and avoid altercation altogether. These characteristics are shown through their actions in the plot prior to and after Gulliver is accused of treason. Gulliver proposed an idea that the Lilliputians should attempt to negotiate with Blefuscu, an idea stemming from the Torie state-of-mind (Swift 60-66). The Lilliputians, being easy to set off and ready to fight, similar to how the Whigs were, immediately rejected the idea and accused Gulliver of treason against their country (Swift 60-66). Shortly after being accused, Gulliver fled to a neighboring country by the name of Blefuscu (Swift 67). This part of the novel mocks the Tories actions after they were accused of