“Turn their Reproach Upon Their Own Head” (Or, Uses and Abuses of Satire)

By Ron Halbrook Satire speaks with a sparkle in its eye; and with a chuckle. Alerted by Satire’s mischievous grin, the listener looks behind surface humor and other appearances for the real meaning. Satire generally mixes the witty and the caustic, though one may be relied upon more heavily than the other from time to time. …