Satire And Parody In Huck Finn

Satire and parody are two types of comedy that have been used all the way back to the era of Mark Twain. Satire resembles parody but it is critical and is used to educate or make a change. Parody is just poking fun at something with no purpose. The episode of the Simpson's on the Odyssey was a perfect example of a parody. The clip of the "Do the Right Thing" is a good satire. It has a white man pronouncing how his favorite celebrities are all black but yet he still uses the word nigger. Afterwards, there is a total chaos of racial slurs and stereotypes released into the Brooklyn streets. This can show us what happens when your feelings are released and just how mean it can be. This satire was funny and effective.

In the Dave Chapelle skit we watched, there was white family whose last name was niggar. Throughout the skit they refer to themselves as niggars, and it sounds really funny and out of place. However if it were a black family it would have changed things around a bit. The reason it is funny is how it pokes fun at a very harmful word. I think this was satire, because it poked fun at the word, but teaches the audience how it really depends on circumstances when the word is used.

After reading the page about blackface minstrelsy I was appalled at how racist it was. It completely stereotyped the black race without any regard for their feelings. Just because it is funny for the people watching, doesn't mean there are people elsewhere that are extremely hurt by it.

As I learned about the two types of comedy, I find myself puzzled over what is funnier. Nothing is better than a great Peter Griffin parody, but a good satire gives me both laughs and something to think about.