Previous
Paradox
Definition of Satire
Satire is the use of humor, irony, sarcasm, or ridicule to criticize something or someone. Public figures, such as politicians, are often the subject of satire, but satirists can take... read full definition
Satire is the use of humor, irony, sarcasm, or ridicule to criticize something or someone. Public figures, such as politicians, are often the subject of... read full definition
Satire is the use of humor, irony, sarcasm, or ridicule to criticize something or someone. Public figures, such as politicians... read full definition
Key Examples in The Rainbow
Chapter 11: First Love
Explanation and Analysis—Noah's Flood:
After the wedding of Fred and Laura, Ursula and Anton sneak into the cornfields and kiss in the cover of darkness. The next morning, Ursula attends a church service, where she privately dismisses the church's teachings on sexual morality. In this scene, which alludes to various biblical figures, Ursula offers a satirical revision of the story of Noah and the Ark:
It pleased Ursula to think of the naiads in Asia Minor meeting the nereids [...]and calling to their sisters the news of Noah’s Flood. They would tell amusing accounts of Noah in his ark. Some nymphs would relate how they had hung on the side of the ark, peeped in, and heard Noah and Shem and Ham and Japheth, sitting in their place under the rain, saying, how they four were the only men on earth now, because the Lord had drowned all the rest, so that they four would have everything to themselves, and be masters of every thing, sub-tenants under the great Proprietor.
Related Themes:
