Child Safety Satire

Written Satire Assignment Child-Safety Experts Call for Restrictions on Childhood Imagination http://www.theonion.com/article/child-safety-experts-call-for-restrictions-on-chil-2151 Target: The satirical article primarily targets panic stricken and overprotective parents who go beyond regular measures to protect and ensure the safety of their children. The target of this satire also extends to educators, government agencies, and others given roles centered around children.
Main Idea: The article opens with The Department of Health and Human Services issuing guidelines to assist parents in suppressing their children’s imaginations. Inauthentic child safety experts later proclaim that imagination is linked to severe physical injuries in

This exaggeration was done to draw attention to how ridiculous government safety requirements for kids can be. For example, “Defuse the ticking time-bomb known as your child 's imagination before it explodes and destroys her completely” (para. 2) is an exaggeration to demonstrate how many parents believe they must prevent their kid from being creative since they think it is so harmful. A child being imaginative should not be compared to a time bomb, which actually inflicts wounds and destruction. The preventative measures to inhibit a child’s imagination are also overdramatic. For instance, “To truly protect your children, you must go to great lengths to completely eliminate their curiosity, crush their spirit of amazement, and eradicate their childlike glee” (para. 11) overemphasizes the idea of parents who raise their child too strictly and expect their child to behave like an

1). This demonstrates reversal as it is something that is opposite of the normal order. Parents are typically seen as encouraging and accepting figures. They would be expected to support their children’s imaginative behavior – not curtailing it.

Irony: The notion of child safety experts restricting the imaginations of children is ironic. Limiting a child’s imagination is just as unsafe and dangerous, if not more so. Preventing a kid from wandering their mind is detrimental to their wellbeing and could ruin their overall childhood experience. Imagination is a powerful tool that is vital for a child’s development and