SATIRE
Presentation
This chapter is devoted to the information about satire. After the definition of satire, its significant characteristics, and some techniques used in satire will be discussed.
What Is Satire? …Definition
There are many different ways to reveal one s perception of life and its reflection by a person. In art for instance, the reflection may be revealed in the form of a sculpture, a song or a picture. Satire is one the ways that the reaction or perception of life is expressed. Since people look at life from different stand points, as matter of fact, they naturally perceive it in numerous ways. As a result of the variety in perception, the way of revealing the effects or reflections of these perceptions also shows variety.
Originally, the word “satire” comes from “the Latin word for medley, satura; the impression that it is to do with the word “satyr” is a popular delusion” (Abrams, 1986, p.2598). it is a way of revealing the reaction to what is perceived, with a mixture of laughter and outrage. In The Quarterly Journal of Contemporary Satire the description of satire is given as “a work in which vices, follies, stupidities, abuses, etc. are held up to ridicule and contempt.” In the preface to The Battle of the Books, Jonathan Swift, who claimed that satire is therapeutic, describes satire as “A sort of glass wherein beholders do generally discover everybody s face but their own” (In Bozkurt, 1977, p.71).
Bozkurt (1977), offers two fundamental types of satire: Horatian and Juvenalian satire. These types are named for two Roman poets Horace and Jevenal, the most differentiated practitioner of them. As Bozkurt reports, both of them were critical of the Roman society but while the former was more “gentle, urbane, smiling and tolerant”, the latter was “severe” and angry. Horatian satire is purpose is to sort out society through a “gentle and broadly sympathetic laughter.” On the other hand, Juvelian satire is “bitter, angry, misanthropic” or cynical. It approaches to its subject with a degrading and disrespecting manner(Bozkurt, 1977, p. 68).
Characteristics of Satire
People, in their everyday life, always use satire in order to respond several events going on in their environs. The main purpose of using satire is to attack and intensely criticise the target subject. It also includes aggressiveness toward the subject being criticised. As a matter of fact, satire should include more than these in order to be accepted as a satirical work. It must, for instance, include aesthetic features like different sound and meaning patterns that can give pleasure to the readers. Furthermore, the satirist should deal with problematic subjects that are known by many people. In doing so, the satirist should abstract the setting of satire from the world. Mostly, this imaginary world is of non-human beings, as in beast fables like Animal Farm or, as in Gulliver s Travels and Alice in Wonderland, a world that possibly would not exist or in which the real world is turned upside down. Primary reason for abstraction is to move readers from the concrete reality, and so, while entertaining them through a fantastic setting to provide them with a critical vision. Richard (1976) calls this element of satire “fantasy”. He says.
The satirist does not paint an objective picture of the evils he describes, since pure realism would be too oppressive. Instead he usually offers us a travesty of the situation, which at once directs our attention to actuality and permits an escape from it. … It is written for entertainment, but contains sharp and telling comments on the problems of the world in which we live, offering imaginary gardens with real toads in them .
As mentioned above, people approach problems, subjects etc. in different ways so do authors. The satirist differs from authors of other types of literature with regard to its way of dealing with his subject. In novel or drama, for example, the target subject is dealt with directly. In the Cherry Orchard, Chekhov deals with social change in Russia and how people react to it. His characters are real persons that can be found in the society as they are described in the play. On the hand, it is impossible to find a real Napoleon or Lilliputian in a society. Since, they are just symbols of particular types of people.
In this sense, the satirist use high level of symbolism. One reason for using symbols might be that it provides the author with an absolute freedom to attack his targets through their images he created which seemingly have no relation with the reality. As Richard (1976) notices, the satirist often aims at “to deflate false heroes, imposters or charlatans, who claim a respect which is not their due, the vehicle he chooses for this is usually the mock-heroic.” Therefore, in order to operate his attack and mockery towards these so-called heroes who might be leaders of a country or people of prestigiousness, without any restriction the satirist uses symbols.
Since the main topic of satire is politics which is throughout the history considered a dirty business, writing political satire is very risky, but on the other hand it would be very rewardful. As remarked before, after he published his two satires, Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four, Orwell was to be one of the greatest authors of literature, as mentioned above he hardly find a publisher for Animal Farm, and published it after a year he finished it.
In order to achieve his end says Richard (1976), the satirist “must use some of the basic strategies of satire.” He also should “commit himself boldly to his impure subject, yet retain a purity of attitude, in his aesthetic disengagement from the vulgarities and stupidities of the struggle.” Richard (1976) continues his argument by adding that what distinguishes satire from other kinds of literature is its approach to the subject. Therefore its subject-matter forms the most important aspect of satire. Despite he introduces the cruellest facts of life, the satirist mean to make people laugh and In order to make people laugh, he employs some techniques.
Techniques of Satire
The satirist may use different forms of literature in prose or verse. But for the satirist some particular techniques are necessary to achieve his aim. Richard (1976) suggests two main techniques that the satirist use: the first one is reduction and the other one is invective and irony.
Reduction is the act of decreasing or reducing something. It is the main means of the satirist to attack his subject. People can more easily criticise those who they can laugh at. Since, laughter loosen muscles and is anatomically relaxing. if you laugh at someone, then your critical mechanism are set free, your criticism is revealed easily. Through reduction the satirist aims at to make the reader laugh at his subject. Degrading, says Richard (1976) may be employed “on the level of plot and will almost he continued to the level of style and language.” He puts Gulliver s Travels as the most outstanding example of reduction. Animal world is continually used by the satirist for this aim.
Invective is the expression of bitter deep-seated ill will. As it can be expected the satirist, writing satire, expose himself to counter-attacks by those who attacked. Richard (1976 )says:
this danger becomes the greater, the more the writer is committed to invective and abuse. Invective is of course one of his most useful weapons, and it is an art its own: it requires elegance of form to set off grossness of content, and learned allusiveness to set off open insult. But although invective has the sanction of holy writ, the best satirist use it only occasionally, for shock effect (p.130).
Irony is one of the figure of speeches. It includes the reverse meaning of what is said. It is one of the main devices of which the satirist make use. As Richard (1976) wrote,
“Irony assumes double meaning and double audience one of which is deceived by the surface meaning of the words, and another that catches the hidden sense and laughs with the deceiver at the expense of the deceived. In order to operate irony, the satirist uses imaginary or fictional characters or events by which s/he allow the double flow of meaning to be maintained (p.130).
Chapter
METHOD OF RESEARCH
Presentation
This chapter is concerned with the procedure of the research which was carried out to collect necessary sources for the study and method of the study.
Procedure
Since the subject of this study mainly concerns with George Orwell s Animal Farm, first the book was read. After reading the book, sources about George Orwell s life and Animal Farm were cited. When investigating Orwell s intention in writing the book and his political convictions, mainly his essays were used as primary sources. During this period it was found that the Spanish Revolution was of great influence. Information on the Spanish War was mainly drawn from secondary sources.
Since the book is strongly related to the Russian Revolution, Socialism, Communism and Marxism, several sources and Internet sites were searched for to find out important dates and events in the Revolution, and to gather basic information about the principles of above maintained ideologies. In the parts related to these subjects of the study, again, mostly secondary sources were used.
Information about Satire is mainly drawn from secondary sources.
Finally, comparison of Animal Farm and the Russian Revolution in terms of characters, events and some specific elements, mainly based on the information gathered from primary and secondary sources.
ANIMAL FARM AS SATIRE
Presentation
In this chapter, under the light of information given in the chapter-1 and chapter-2, Animal Farm will be examined. It aims at to show the elements of satire in Animal Farm, and to compare characters, events and some elements of Animal Farm and The Russian Revolution
Elements of Satire In Animal Farm
Orwell, as quoted before, clearly explains that his main purpose for writing Animal Farm was to write a satire on the Russian Revolution (In Shelden, 1991, p.399). Through animal satire, Orwell attacks on the Stalin s practices in Russia and in wider scope, on totalitarian regimes. Taking Bozkurt s (1977) classification into consideration, Animal Farm would be said to be a Juvenial satire. Since, it is clearly seen that Orwell bitterly criticise Russian Communism and Stalin.
Summary of The Plot
One night after Farmer Jones has gone to bed drunk, all the animals of Manor Farm meet in the barn for a meeting. Old Major, the prize Middle White boar, wants to tell them about a strange dream he had. First, he narrate “the nature of life” as he has come to understand it. Animals, though work very hard.