Over the years, there are various types of essays that students both in high school and college levels have tackled, and satire essays are among them. Satirical essays have proven to be quite a bother to many of these scholars for the past decade, mainly because a majority of articles given require a formal approach.
However, in the case of a satire essay, one needs to use the casual method by incorporating comedy, hyperbole, and sarcasm.
In this article, we will specifically deal with satirical essays by giving you the definition and more importantly, guide you on how to come up with an outstanding satirical piece.
Many scholars have a hard time defining what exactly is a satirical essay. Well, this is an article that is used to ridicule an individual for his/her imperfections and in some cases, situations too. The special thing about this article is that it’s done in a mocking manner. A satire essay is used to enlighten readers in political and social life occurrences with the help of comedy, sarcasm, and exaggeration devices.
Well, to many people, this article may seem challenging to write, but in real sense, if you want to make the entire process to be like a walk in the park, you must be conversant with the necessary writing devices.
With that, follow these guidelines so that you can ensure that your article stands out
Before coming up with a satirical essay, it’s considered helpful to, first of all, understand the rules and requirements of the article. This will give you an idea whether to use a particular format or if you are to satirize only a question then supplement your answers in detailed form.
Having your article written in the first-person perspective offers you countless possibilities. This technique enables you to bring elements like cultural and social principles into your article. An example in a sentence of the first-person perspective can be, “I noticed that my apartment door was wide open and that aroused my curiosity to know who was courageous enough to break into my apartment.”
Essays on satire can be used to write in on any subject; therefore, it’s recommended to go through the political and cultural occurrences. Research in various published articles, world media, and trending news you might stumble upon a topic that might interesting you. Here are some subjects that are common among authors:
As you select an item, be keen to check whether the issue is silly. The importance of doing this is for you to have an easy task in enhancing the absurdness of the matter. This is just like how an artist will come up with cartoons as a means of improving absurdity. To select a perfect topic, you need to begin by identifying your goal. When you have a goal in mind, then you can proceed to support your information with comedy, exaggeration, and sarcasm to accomplish that goal.
If you want to know whether your job has been well accomplished, be keen to notice if your readers after have expressed their emotions be it negative or positive. If they do so, then it’s clear that you’ve done your job excellently.
After selecting your subject, the step that follows is working around how you will elaborate your points. To begin with, your humor should be managed to a certain point and not scattered all over. Reason being, scattered comedy will portray your work as incomplete; therefore, here are some guidelines:
Brainstorming, when it comes to accomplishing any academic task, is considered a potent tool even to essays on satire.
This is mainly because it encourages word association with various topics and offers you a platform to choose the best of elements from the discussion. Thus, providing the author a better approach to your assignment.
After selecting the right subject for your work, develop a robust theory statement that will attract your reader’s attention. In a brief statement, insist upon your point and show your readers your perspective towards the subject. Always keep in mind that even in satirical essays, the structure of a theory statement is still the same.
The primary aim of having a satirical essay is to offer the audience factual data with hints of fun, comedy, and exaggeration. A satirical essay has a different format from other articles, whereby you can express your views and thoughts concerning the topic at hand.
In this article, an author’s task is not only to ensure that his/her readers are enjoying the piece but also to shed light on what he is enthusiastic about.
Many students aren’t asked by their teachers to quote sources directly, but since current occurrences surround one at specific moments, it’s then considered wise to cite your references. As you check some of the famous satirical essays, you’ll notice that the authors emphasized on the topics they were passionate about that’s why their work stood out.
When it comes to citing be careful because some biased news sites present information falsely. To curb such problems, stay away from these sources and gather your data from unbiased, academic sites.
What are these reliable sources? They are newspapers, magazines, and academic websites that offer information on many current and trending issues.
If you decide to include sources in your satire essay, quote them to ensure that all rights are reserved. In case your tutor hasn’t given you the style to be used, choose the most comfortable one to follow.
In your introduction, form your statements in a way your readers can be easily attracted to your work. You can start your essay with a quote, a comical story, or even a question. In this section, you are required to state your opinion clearly and give an explanation of why you selected this topic.
In this section, your goal here is to challenge the beliefs of your reader and bring forth their emotions. Ensure that the topic applies to your readers then include four arguments to the main claim.
In your essay’s body, use the ELP technique. What is this technique exactly? The abbreviations stand for Ethos, Logos, and Pathos;
Conclusion. In this section, don’t include satirical devices instead, use it as a platform for calling your readers to action. Restate your theories and then propose a solution to the issue and ensure it’s realistic.
When you’ve figured it out what it is you want to write, then take into consideration, the audience who will view your work. Whether it will be read by scholars in university or high school level or by experts, in the field you’re ridiculing.
Knowing your audience is a crucial thing because the tone you’ll use is reliant upon the kind of people who will be reading your article. Your readers can also be the cause for you to either go formally or casually in your writing. Below are some of the questions you should ask yourself.
Hyperbole in essays on satire are devices that are designed for emphasizing your point. However, you need to be careful with it because exaggerating is not similar to lying. Therefore, if you need to use this device in your article, accompany it with factual data. In other words, hyperbole should be used to shed light on the imperfections behind the facts. An example of exaggeration can be:” James came home with a lot of groceries that could feed an entire army!”
Your essay on satire should contain elements of irony here and there. Irony is a device used in the category of literature to show the contrast of what you mean.
An example to help you understand the concept of irony can be: “The town’s fire station burned down.” In this sentence, it is ironical because a fire station has all the equipment designed to curb fire, and yet it burned.”
All in all, irony can be a useful device in satirical essays mainly, if it’s used together with sarcasm to condemn.
When you come up with your essay, incorporate humor. Not every instance in a satire is considered hilarious, therefore if you highlight the silly parts of the occurrence or individual describing, then your readers can see things the way you see them.
In case you didn’t know, comedy enables people to understand the point you’re trying to put across quickly. Thus, the response to your writing will be much quicker if they have successfully understood your article.
Now that you’re in possession of the skeleton for your work; you’ve come up with a topic, you’ve assessed your situation currently, then its time you begin writing. These are some of the tips that can make your article stand out.
Always remember that it’s fun writing a satirical essay, but the primary goal is to portray your perspective concerning the subject at hand. Just like writing a reflective essay, one has all the freedom to be as creative as they please. All that is required of you, is to support your opinions with facts on the subject.
This technique has been used in famous satirical essays, and it’s what will make your article to stand out. This is because, with exaggeration and real facts, your readers can be persuaded to reason in a particular manner. Therefore, you need to know that a satire essay is convincing and opinionated, so if you are to read your final copy, ensure that you, as the author, can feel a particular pull of conviction.
If you never had a clue of how to write this kind of essay, we hope that this article has made satire essays understandable. Even though this essay is among the toughest assignments to be given in learning institutions, with a right level of knowledge on the subject and familiarity with the satirical devices, you’ll be able to write an excellent essay on satire. With that, be sure to leave your comments below.