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Civic satire in literature definition. Satire as a literary genre. Examples of satire in works

Civic satire in literature definition.  Satire as a literary genre.  Examples of satire in works
  1. Satire - Satĭra old satura scil. lanx, meant the actual dish, which referta variis multisque primitiis sacris Cereris inferebatur (Diomedes, Diomedes), but then also other items, consisting of different spices and parts... Dictionary of Classical Antiquities
  2. SATIRE - SATIRE (lat. satira), 1) a way of manifesting the comic in art, consisting in a devastating ridicule of phenomena that the author considers vicious. Big encyclopedic dictionary
  3. satire - orph. satire, -s Lopatin's spelling dictionary
  4. satire - -s, f. 1. A way of displaying the comic in art, consisting in annihilating ridicule of phenomena that seem to the author to be vicious. Small Academic Dictionary
  5. satire - Borrowed. in the 18th century from the French lang., where satire< лат. satira (сначала - «десерт», затем - «стихотворная смесь» и «сатира»), производного от satur «сытый». Сатира буквально - «блюдо после насыщения». Etymological Dictionary of Shansky
  6. satire - Borrowed from French, randomly from Latin, where satira - "snack, all sorts of things" (from satur - "full"). Etymological Dictionary of Krylov
  7. satire - noun, number of synonyms: 13 mockery 18 mockery 29 mockery 18 irony 11 caricature 8 mockery 35 denunciation 15 ridicule 12 ridicule 13 parody 13 political satire 1 epigram 5 humor 32 Dictionary of synonyms of the Russian language
  8. satire - SATIRE -s; and. [lat. satira] 1. A method of manifestation of the comic in art, consisting in annihilating ridicule of phenomena that seem to the author to be vicious. 2. A work of art sharply and ruthlessly exposing the negative phenomena of reality. Explanatory Dictionary of Kuznetsov
  9. satire - Latin - satira, satura. French is satire. The word "satire" has become widespread in the Russian language since 1729, during the appearance of Kantemir's satires (manuscripts). In Russian dictionaries, the word has been noted since 1794 ... Semyonov's etymological dictionary
  10. satire - Satyr / a. Morphemic spelling dictionary
  11. satire - Satires, f. [Latin. satira]. 1. An accusatory literary work depicting the negative phenomena of reality in a funny way. ugly (lit.). Angry satire. 2. trans., only units. A mockery, a denunciation. Big Dictionary foreign words
  12. satire - SATIRE, s, f. 1. A work of art that sharply and mercilessly denounces the negative phenomena of reality. 2. Convicting, scourging ridicule. | adj. satirical, oh, oh. C. genre. C. style. Explanatory dictionary of Ozhegov
  13. Satire - Poetic denunciation of current reality: this is the most complete definition of the diverse literary form that everyday speech, and sometimes theory behind it, is called satire. Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron
  14. satire - SATIRE s, f. satire<�лат. satira < satura lanx переполненное блюдо, мешанина. 1. В литературе классицизма - произведение (обычно стихотворное), осмеивающее какой-л. порок, недостаток. БАС-1. Dictionary of Russian Gallicisms
  15. satire - An essay ridiculing human weaknesses and vices Cf. Poisonous satire ... forgotten ... at that moment he is ready to compose a panegyric in favor of Aristarkh Fedorovich and stigmatize his closest acquaintances with satire. Goncharov. Break. 5, 15. Cf. Michelson's Phraseological Dictionary
  16. satire - satire 1. A work that ridicules any vice, shortcoming (in the literature of classicism). 2. A work of art in which the negative phenomena of reality are sharply, caricaturedly depicted and denounced. 3. An evil mockery, a sharp denunciation. Explanatory Dictionary of Efremova
  17. Satire - Y, female. Star. rare Derivatives: Satire; Satya (Sata). Origin: (Female to (see Satyr)) Dictionary of personal names
  18. Satire - SATIRE. - In a somewhat indefinite and vague sense, any literary work is called satire, in which a certain definite attitude to the phenomena of life is expressed, namely, condemnation and ridicule of them, exposing them to general laughter ... Dictionary of literary terms
  19. satire - merciless ~ sharp ~ Dictionary of Russian Idioms
  20. satire - see >> mockery Abramov's synonym dictionary
  21. Satire - SATIRE - a kind of comic (see Aesthetics), which differs from other types (humor, irony) by the sharpness of the denunciation. S. at its inception was a certain lyrical genre. Literary Encyclopedia
  22. Zaliznyak's grammar dictionary
  23. satire - SAT'IRA, satires, women. (lat. satira). 1. An accusatory literary work depicting the negative phenomena of reality in a funny, ugly form (lit.). Satires of Cantemir. Funny satire. Horace. Angry satire of Juvenal. Scourge of satire. Explanatory Dictionary of Ushakov
  24. satire - SATIRE a mocking composition, a mockery of weakness and vice. satirical essay. A satirist is such a writer. Dahl's Explanatory Dictionary

satire genre soviet magazine

The term "satire" comes from the Latin "lanx satura", which means "plate of fruit", "mixture". Satire is a diatribe literary work that depicts the negative phenomena of reality in a funny, ugly way,.

As a special poetic form, satire appeared in the civil culture of ancient Rome. It arose from folk art, which repeatedly and constantly refers to satire as a tool of self-defense and self-consolation from the strong and powerful. Prominent representatives of Roman satire were Ennius, Lucilius, Horace, Persia, and especially Juvenal, who determined its form for later European classicism. In medieval and new Europe, satire went beyond the old form and developed as an independent work.

Russian satire already existed in the 17th century and earlier in the folk story, the work of buffoons, etc. (“the parable of the hawker”, satires on the court of Shemyaka and Yersh Yershovich, the son of Shchetinnikov, etc.).

In the 18th century, satire flourished in Russia. New genres appear: epigram, message, fable, comedy, parody song, journalism. The creator of Russian satire as a small poetic genre focused on antique and classic samples was A.D. Cantemir. Cantemir, imitating Latin verse, developed a new syntax, intensively used inversions and transfers, sought to bring the verse closer to "simple conversation", introduced vernaculars, proverbs and sayings,.

However, the stylistic innovations of Kantemir did not find continuation in Russian literature.

The next step in the development of domestic satire was made by A.P. Sumarokov, the author of numerous books on satire, in which he outlined his theoretical views on the purpose of satire and its place in the hierarchy of classic genres.

In the second half of the 18th century, poetic satire in Russia gave way to magazine satire. In the 1760s-1790s, new satirical magazines were opened one after another in Russia: Useful Hobby, Free Hours, Mixture, Truten, published by I.S. Krylov "Mail of Spirits", "Spectator" and many others,.

Magazine satire more and more gravitates towards the feuilleton genre. Elements of satire appear in the novel and drama. The most vivid images of satire in Russian literature are represented by the works of A.S. Griboedova, N.V. Gogol, A.V. Sukhovo-Kobylina, N.A. Nekrasov.

The history of Russian satire at the beginning of the 20th century is connected with the activities of the magazines "Satyricon" (1908-1914) and "New Satyricon" (1913-1918), in which the largest satirical writers of the era were published: A. Averchenko, Sasha Cherny (A. Glikberg), Teffi (N. Buchinskaya) and others. The magazines did not avoid bold political satire, turned to a wide range of poetic and prose genres, attracted outstanding artists as illustrators (B. Kustodiev, K. Korovin, A. Benois, M. Dobuzhinsky and others. )

Among the most notable phenomena of Russian satire of the 20th century are the lyrics and plays by V. Mayakovsky, the prose of M. Bulgakov, M. Zoshchenko, I. Ilf and E. Petrov, and the dramatic tales of E. Schwartz. The satire of the Soviet period is a sphere of ideology, divided into "external", denouncing capitalist reality (Black and White, 1926, V. Mayakovsky), and "internal", in which the denial of particular flaws is combined with a general affirmative principle. In parallel with the official satire, there are folklore genres (joke, ditty) and satirical literature not allowed for publication. The unofficial satire is dominated by the grotesque and fantasy, the utopian and anti-utopian elements are highly developed (Heart of a Dog and Fatal Eggs by M. Bulgakov), .

Satire occupies an important place in the work of representatives of the first wave of Russian literary emigration (A. Averchenko, Sasha Cherny, Teffi, V. Goryansky, Don Aminado (A. Shpolyansky), etc.). The genres of satirical story and feuilleton predominate in their heritage. In 1931, in Paris, M. Kornfeld resumed the publication of the Satyricon, . In addition to the previous authors, I. Bunin, A. Remizov, A. Kuprin participate in the published issues. A special place in the magazine is occupied by a satire on Soviet reality and the mores of emigration. Thus, we can conclude that satire as a literary genre is a criticism of reality with the aim of improving it. Satire appeared in antiquity, and its appearance can be associated with the social system in human society. In its development, satire went through different stages of evolution: it arose from folk art, but developed as an independent work; was presented as an instrument of self-defense and self-consolation, but became an instrument of denunciation of problems and shortcomings in society. Having become an independent genre, satire earned a special attitude towards itself from the progressive people of society. The satirical genres of journalism began to be written in a special "handwriting", which was characterized by the reliability of the description, the targeting of facts, the presence of the "sharpness" of the problem, the "open visor" in its presentation, . Unfortunately, the history of Russian satire, having many examples, has not been studied in depth and in detail so far, neither in relation to its classical poetic form, nor even more so in relation to the huge satirical content of the Russian story, novel and everyday comedy.

In the process of history development, 9 types of satirical heats were formed. Consider each type of satirical genre in more detail.

B.V. Kakorina, naming some new and traditional genre forms of satire, mentions invective: “In a number of newspapers there are peculiar “name-calls”. The specifics of their communicative task can be called invectives based on parody, playing on the names of the first persons of the state. The genre archetype of the invective is a accusatory message, for the sake of refuting the enemy, it widely uses attacks on his personal traits and moral qualities.

Modern invective is a genre of offensive, repulsive, cruel, ruthless ridicule based on antipathy. Invective uses various means of negative evaluation for the sake of insult - from expressive words and phrases that are within the limits of literary usage to negatively oriented and swear words. Coarseness at the lexical level is expressed, in particular, in the wider use of vulgarisms, rude colloquial and slang words and expressions.

Almost any word used in a certain context can be perceived as offensive. Extralinguistic means used to attract the attention of readers are at the same time means psychological impact. Rough vocabulary, not to mention swear words, causes anger and mutual hostility, makes a depressing impression, creates a gloomy mood.

The invective genre does not stand up to the test of ethics, since criticism in the invective is not only harsh, but also biased.

In satirical journalism, the genre of parody has always been widespread. Parody is a special kind of satire based on the comic, exaggeratedly emphasized "reproduction of the characteristic individual features of the form of this or that phenomenon, which reveals its comedy and reduces its content", .

Parody is a multi-faceted genre associated with the comprehension of literary and life processes certain historical period. Journalism gives parody publicity. A journalist collects material for a parody not as a literary critic, but as a publicist.

Parody is distinguished by a special irony peculiar to it only. The ironic play with logical forms sharpens the satirical parody. Parody is a means of revealing the inherent failure of what is being parodied. It is comical because it reveals a claim to significance, .

The parody wall newspaper of the "Horns and Hooves" club in the "Literaturnaya Gazeta" focused on an ironic reading of stereotypical information. The newspaper printed several thousand parodies ridiculing newspaper clichés and pseudo-sensationalism. According to the newspaper, the durability of one of the stamps looks like this: “Accident. Late in the evening, citizen N. was returning home. On the corner of the 28th prospect under construction, two strangers approached him, and he gave them his watch and muskrat hat. To numerous questions, N. embarrassedly answered: In my place, everyone would have done the same.

Parody is a means of revealing the inherent failure of what is being parodied. It is comical because it reveals a claim to significance.

Pamphlet. One of the premises of the pamphlet genre was a sarcastic ancient fable as a form of expression of social protest. However, the name of the genre is relatively new - it did not exist in antiquity. Signs of a pamphlet - the identification of a logical connection between facts, a sarcastic denunciation, containing in its basis an invective. An important feature of this genre is its fundamental polemic.

Polemical tendencies can be expressed in the text in two ways: the author either refutes a certain system of opinions, criticizes it, based on the opponent's statements, or expresses his point of view, asserting it in a polemic, a dialogue with an interlocutor,.

Feuilleton. In the 19th century, a newspaper column was called a feuilleton, which separated the official part of the newspaper from everything else, as well as texts written lively, easily, without pretension to depth, designed for the general public.

There was no fundamental difference between the materials that were placed in some newspapers in the "Mix" section, and in others - "Feuilleton". The feuilleton meant not necessarily a satirical, accusatory text, but rather a review of morals, stories from life, a laid-back, non-committal heart-to-heart conversation.

Formulating his understanding of the genre, Doroshevich wrote: “The feuilleton is simpler, more understandable, more accessible to everyone, more entertaining and easier to digest! The feuilleton should not at all be distinguished by wit.

The texts of feuilletons, as well as the work of feuilletonists in general, significantly complement the picture of public life. “The creative task of the feuilletonist is to entice the reader with the help of combinations of ready-made combinations taken from the artist and skillful switching minor topic in a large public order - get a purely newspaper effect. Influence the mass reader quickly and strongly.”

In the 1920s, the study of the genre patterns of the feuilleton began. The diverse, extremely abundant literature on the feuilleton of those years contains deep and fundamental remarks about the distinctive features of the genre. One can even speak of a heightened interest in the nature of the feuilleton. In the same period, the division of the feuilleton into two modifications was quite accurately determined: journalistic and fictionalized (feuilleton-story). Reliance on a reliable fact and detail is an essential principle of artistic journalism in the 1920s.

The texts of feuilletons, as well as the work of feuilletonists in general, significantly complement the picture of public life. “The creative task of the feuilletonist is to lure the reader with the help of combinations of ready-made combinations taken from the artist and by skillfully switching a small topic into a large social order is to obtain a purely newspaper effect. Influence the mass reader quickly and strongly”, .

An epigram - translated from Greek as "inscription on a stone" - is a satirical miniature, characterized by the utmost brevity of characterization, volume of criticism, ridicule. It aims at a certain object, in other cases it is aimed at a negative phenomenon. Often the epigram is given as a text for a caricature.

A fable is a satirical work of an instructive nature, the heroes of which are animals. A fable, as a literary and journalistic work, consists of three parts with different styles and language features. The first part or opening has a medium style that puts the reader into action. The second part is the main one - it describes the main actions of the heroes, in the third - an edification written in a high style.

A caricature is a grotesque image of a criticized phenomenon, event, person. Caricatures are verbal and pictorial.

Caricature - from the French word "gravity", a critical image of a person, event, phenomenon. Caricature differs from caricature by hypertrophied, grotesque depiction of some part of the body or part of a phenomenon. There are friendly and satirical cartoons.

An anecdote is a small satirical work of an instructive nature, containing topical sharp criticism. The text of the joke is built on the principle of an "inverted pyramid" - edification at the very end, at the "top",

Summing up, it can be noted that satire, which originated in Russia in the 17th century, has a large number of subtypes, which indicates the rapid pace of development of this genre in our country. Satire came to "taste" many authors and a large number of writers became adherents of this genre. The popularity of satire and all its types reached its apogee in the first half of the 20th century, thanks to which many talented, sharp, original works with their own history appeared. Each such creation was distinguished by criticism, satire, humor, the use of such techniques as irony, sarcasm, grotesque, hyperbole. A number of works literally permeated with a variety of satirical devices are still the "golden fund" of our literature. This will be covered in more detail in the next chapter.

Satire

Satire

SATIRE - a kind of comic (see Aesthetics), which differs from other types (humor, irony) by the sharpness of the denunciation. S. at its inception was a certain lyrical genre. It was a poem, often significant in volume, the content of which contained a mockery of certain persons or events. S. as a genre originated in Roman literature. The very word "S." comes from the Latin name of mythical creatures, mocking demigods, half animals - satyrs. Philologically, it is also connected with the word satura, which in the common people meant a dish of hodgepodge, which indicated a mixture of various meters (saturnine verse, along with Greek meters) and the presence in S. of a wide variety of descriptions of all kinds of facts and phenomena, unlike other lyrical genres, to -rye had a strictly limited and defined area of ​​the image. Roman S. gave its highest examples in the works of Horace, Persius and especially Juvenal.
Over time, secularism has lost its significance as a particular genre, as happened with other classical genres (elegy, idyllic, etc.). Exposing mockery has become the main feature of S., which determines its main essence. S. fulfilled this purpose with the help of various literary forms and genres. True, whenever the forms of ancient literature were revived in literature, the old genre literature was also partially revived. So it was, for example. in Russian literature of the second half of the 18th century, when the classical form of S. was used by Kantemir, Sumarokov, and others. But at the same time, satirical comedy and satirical magazines with their feuilletons, cartoons, stories, and others also existed.
Comedy is at the heart of S., regardless of genre. Laughter is always a huge means of social influence. “... In all morality, there is no medicine more real, more powerful than exposing the ridiculous” (Lessing, Hamburg Dramaturgy, Sobr. sochin., vol. V, p. 76, ed. Wolf, 1904).
The social functions of the comic determine its form: humorous, satirical and ironic. The social function of laughter and S. lies in the effective struggle against the comically depicted object. This is the difference between S. from humor and irony. It differs from all forms of comic satire by its activity, strong-willed orientation and purposefulness. Laughter always contains negation. Along with laughter in S., therefore, indignation and indignation sound no less strong. Sometimes they are so strong that they almost drown out the funny, push it into the background. The weakness of the comic element in S. gave reason to some researchers to assert that S. could completely do without comic tricks, that she could expose the insignificant and hostile only by her indignation. But indignation itself, with the greatest strength and tension, does not create S. Thus, Lermontov’s “Duma” and “On the Death of Pushkin” by Lermontov, with all their pathos of protest and indignation, are not S. Elements of laughter and indignation can be combined in different ways in S. But it is impossible to build S. outside the comic. Denying the comic as a necessary method of constructing S., we will come to the identification of S. with criticism, with negation in general. The exposure of the Russian autocracy and bureaucracy can be expressed in terms of satire (Saltykov-Shchedrin) and in terms of direct criticism and denial (LN Tolstoy). Mayakovsky satirically denounced the philistinism and the bourgeoisie, Gorky also denounced the philistinism and the bourgeoisie, but in terms of direct denial.
The specificity of S. is not that she reveals negative, harmful or shameful phenomena, but that she always does this by means of a special comic law, where indignation is unity with comic exposure, the exposed is shown as normal, in order to then be discovered through the ridiculous, that this is the norm - only an appearance that obscures evil. This is confirmed by the whole history of S. It is enough to name such names as Rabelais, Beaumarchais, Voltaire, Swift, Saltykov-Shchedrin. Therefore, the classical division of S. into “laughing” and “pathetic”, a cut carried out by Schiller in his article “On Naive and Sentimental Comedy”, has no sufficient basis.
Satire on the enemy is, firstly, a denial of the entire socio-political system. This type of S. was created by the world's greatest satirists, to-rye in different eras gave brilliant examples of criticism and denial of the social reality of their era. Rabelais, Swift, Saltykov-Shchedrin - each with their own individual characteristics created this particular type of C.
In the history of S., we repeatedly meet with the second type of S., when the satirist calls for the correction of individual vices, and not for the destruction of the system that gave rise to these vices. This satire is directed mostly at life, customs, cultural skills and customs. Molière criticized his rising class. The image of "The Tradesman in the Nobility", which covers a number of similar Molière images ("Georges Danden", "Funny Cossacks") is constructed in such a way that, for all its shortcomings, it is funny, but not negative. The shortcomings of these characters must be dealt with, but they can be corrected. In the same plan, Figaro is given by Beaumarchais. The comedy associated with this image does not lead to its denial. Such is Fonvizin, who sought to put forward the ignorant patriarchal nobility in place - a Europeanized, cultural nobility.
The main types of S. differ not only in their material and the nature of the writer's attitude to this material. It is possible to observe completely different forms of construction of secularism. Bourgeois aesthetics and the history of literature have repeatedly spoken of the tendentiousness of secularism, that secularism is a semi-artistic, semi-journalistic genre. S. is “a borderline type of work of art,” because in it “visual-contemplative liveliness” is combined with “non-aesthetic goals” (Jonas Cohn, General Aesthetics). Unfortunately, such views also penetrated into our Soviet criticism (see the preface to the Satira collection in the Academia publishing house, Piksanova's article in the Saltykov-Shchedrin state literary publishing house, where a misunderstanding of the specifics of the form turns a great satirist into a talented essayist) .
Meanwhile, the forms of satirical works are extremely peculiar. We should talk not only about the degree of artistry of S., but also about her artistic originality.
If we turn to that type of S., which is built on the negation social system, we will see that the work of the great satirists - Rabelais, Swift, Saltykov-Shchedrin - separated from each other by time and space, so different in their socio-political genesis, is a great closeness of form. The main feature of S. of this type is that everything depicted in it is given in terms of complete negation. The positive ideological attitudes of the author, in the name of which this denial is being carried out, are not given in the work itself. Their essence is clear from the comic revelation of the insignificance of what is depicted. Hence the often encountered vulgar assertion that satirists of this type do not have a positive ideal.
Such satire is usually built on grotesque hyperbolism, which turns reality into fantasy. Rabelais tells about extraordinary giants, about the colossal accessories of their life, about their fantastic adventures, about sausages and sausages coming to life, about pilgrims traveling in the mouth of Gargantua. Swift fantastically shifts all human concepts, confronting his hero in turn with midgets and giants, talks about a flying island, and so on. Saltykov-Shchedrin portrays the mayor with a winding mechanism in his head, always saying the same two phrases, and so on.
Often they tried to find explanations for hyperbolism and fantasy in the need for the writer to speak Aesopian language. But of course this is not the main thing. Strengthening the comic to the degree of the grotesque, giving it the form of an incredible, fantastic, the satirist thereby reveals its absurdity, its uncertainty, its contradiction with reality.
The realistic-grotesque fantasy of satirists, as the basis of their style, determines a number of separate techniques. The most important of these are that the fantastic is given with an exact and very extensive enumeration of naturalistic details (Rabelais) or even an accurate measurement of its dimensions (Swift).
The striving for a comprehensive realistic critique of the social system also determined the very genre of this type of secularism. The great satirical writers, who used their talent to expose the social and political system hostile to them, made the novel their main genre. The form of the novel made it possible to cover a wide range of reality. At the same time, the usual form of the novel, in connection with its satirical function, received its own characteristics as a form of a satirical novel. A satirical novel is not bound by a specific plot. The plot here is just a canvas on which everything that serves to depict and expose one or another side of life is strung. The satirist does not limit himself to the number of actors, just as he is not obliged to follow their fate to the end.
This determines the special construction of character images and their significance in the overall composition of this kind of satirical work. Not understanding this originality, Hornfeld, for example. believes that “a type in satire is not so much a living poetic image as a schematic image, devoid of individualizing details that give such vitality and charm to the creations of humor ... a mighty preponderance of social and ethical interests over aesthetic ones makes him (satirist - S.N. .) lyrics and suppresses in him the creator of objective types.
Here, there is a clear misunderstanding of the methods of S. The satirist, no less than any other artist, is capable of artistic embodiment of the reality he reflects. It is enough to recall the images of the Epicurean philosopher Panurge in Rabelais or Judas Golovlev in Saltykov-Shchedrin. But this individualization and typification is achieved by other means than in humor - not through the psychological deployment of the image, but through large generalizations, on which S. is built and which make it possible in each character, taken in a very small period of place and time , catch the social-typical. But that is precisely why the socially typical does not become a scheme, it is embodied in artistically convincing individualized life images.
The absence of a solid plot allows the satirist not to be constrained by the demands of the development of a single action, because the compositional movement of S. is determined by the requirements of the location of that system of criticism, which the author seeks to give in his S., and not by the requirements of the compositional development of a single plot intrigue. This is not taken into account by theorists, who, not understanding the originality of the satirical form, speak of the compositional precariousness, vagueness of S. as one of her main sins against artistry. The universalism of criticism in a satirical novel determines the need to use the most diverse material. The satirical novel uses comic characters, situations, dialogues and words in equal measure. This is the difference between S. of this type and other types of S.
Satire is built differently, based on the opposition of positive and negative, virtue and vice. The satirist opposes Starodum to Skotinin and Prostakov, Chatsky to Famusov and Molchalin, Cleante to Tartuffe, Anselm to Harpogon. But the nature of the distribution of the negative and positive elements in this satire differs sharply from similar non-satirical works, say, from the petty-bourgeois tearful drama. S. puts forward negative types and characters to the fore, giving the positive only as a background for them, or not giving it at all. This S. is par excellence S. types and characters. Separate negative sides The satirist embodies the social structure in individual characters. Negative types are built for the most part on some one sharply prominent feature; on the stinginess of Harpagon, on the hypocrisy of Tartuffe, on the subservience and servility of Molchalin, on the stupid martinet Skalozub. This satirically pointed character trait sometimes creates a social mask instead of an individualized image.
So far, we have been talking about two main types of S. Within these types, we find diverse genres of S.: along with the satirical novel, satirical drama, comedy, S. also uses a number of small genres - epigram, anecdote, satirical feuilleton, caricature. And these small genres are subdivided, depending on the author's satirical attitude, into the same two types. So, if we compare S. "Iskra" of the 60s. and "Satyricon", then the distinctive features of these two types of S.
It should be emphasized that in addition to the main types of S., we often meet in literary practice with elements of S. in the works of writers of a non-satirical direction. These elements of secularism are especially strong in the work of writers who are representatives of critical realism (Stendhal, Balzac, Flaubert, Maupassant, and others).
In European literature, the history of S. is closely connected with the history of the struggle of the young bourgeoisie against the feudal order. So, already from the 14th century, as the forces that so clearly declared themselves as the Renaissance, Reformation took shape, S. was gaining more and more space. In a variety of ways, the church and its ministers, the medieval way of life, the dogmas of religion, and even more - the arbitrariness of the guardians of these dogmas, the depravity and stupidity of Catholic priests, the stupidity and narrow-mindedness of scholastic scientists are satirically ridiculed. The genres of S. are becoming extremely diverse. Here is a fable, in which a donkey in a lion's skin depicts the papacy, and individual small satirical short stories, schwanks, and an animal epic (“The Fight of Mice and Frogs”), and large satirical novels using popular satirical poetry.
The Renaissance, the Reformation, were the first great attack of the young bourgeoisie on the old feudal order. This epoch therefore produced S.'s masterpieces in France and Germany. The royal-aristocratic character of the English Reformation and the puritanical character of the bourgeois revolution led to what England did not know in the 16th-17th centuries. such a wide development of satirical genres as France and Germany. The vast German satirical literature of the Reformation begins with the famous Narrenschiff (1434) Seb. Brant. Fischart (1546-1590) was the most important German satirist of the Reformation. He wrote a free adaptation of Rabelais' novel "Gargantua" - a satirical work containing a comprehensive critique of the social system and its shortcomings. However, the pinnacle of satirical literature of the Reformation era is Erasmus of Rotterdam's Letters of Dark Men (1515-1517) and Praise of Folly (1509), which played a world-historical role. S. humanists and the Reformation - scourging, poisonous, contemptuous. It seeks not to improve and correct, but to reduce, offend, destroy.
This huge, for the most part nameless satirical literature or the literature of forgotten writers, extremely diverse in different countries, depending on the specific conditions of the struggle of the emerging young bourgeoisie, self-conscious third estate, is crowned in France with the brilliant grotesque Rabelais (see) "Gargantua and Pantagruel" - a genuine satirical encyclopedia of the Middle Ages. But as the first round of the struggles of the young bourgeoisie against feudalism ended, as Catholic reaction triumphed and feudalism, after a series of retreats, consolidated itself in new positions, S., aimed at blowing up the very foundations of feudal society, gave way to S., the task of -Roy was only a criticism of the particular shortcomings of the system (Scarron's Comic Novel, 1651; Grimmelshausen's Simplicissimus, 1668, etc.). This secularism opposes the imitation of the foreign, the oblivion of the German foundations of life (Lauremberg, 1590–1658; Mosheros, 1601–1669), and the savagery and coarsening of morals brought about by the Thirty Years' War (Grimmelshausen, Mosheros). By this time, the revival of the classical form of Roman S. as a lyric poem (Rachel) dates back, which in French literature flourished by the end of the 16th century. (Viret, "Satyres chrestiennes de la cuisine", du Verdier, "Les omonymes, satire contre les mOur corrompues de ce siecle").
The S. of negation again begins to loudly declare itself when the third estate in the 18th century. began to prepare for a decisive battle with feudalism.
Of course, even in the era of the triumph of Catholic reaction and absolutism, the third estate did not abandon the instrument of S. It is enough to recall Molière, the first classic of the French bourgeoisie, who created such masterpieces of S. as Tartuffe and The Philistine in the Nobility.
However, bourgeois S. flourished only in the 18th century. S. captured and related ideological areas, penetrating into journalism, into sociology. Thus, for Montesquieu, his "Persian Letters" were a form of political exposure of the arbitrariness and lawlessness of French absolutism and opposed to him by the English system of parliamentary power. Bourgeois Enlightenment of the 18th century. because the task of the Enlightenment was to fight the feudal system in the name of the triumph of the bourgeois. It is quite natural that the classic of the French S. XVIII century. became one of the greatest enlighteners of France - Voltaire (see). His "Orleans virgin", his "Candide", his pamphlets are masterpieces of satirical denial and explosion of all the shrines of feudal Catholic society, ridicule of the foundations on which this society has rested for centuries. Another central motif of Voltaire's satire, the struggle against the arbitrariness of the absolute monarchy, merged with the crushing denunciation of the church. Voltaire was the highest expression of the satirical denial of the feudal world among the French Enlightenment. But his arrival was prepared and continued by numerous satirists, forgotten or unknown. The masterpieces of the French S. are Diderot's Rameau's Nephew (see) and the Beaumarchais trilogy (see).
The influence of the extremely strong and politically sharpened French S. affected the S. of the Enlightenment in Germany. But these are only echoes of the strong political excitement of the neighboring country. German absolutism was strong, but the German bourgeoisie was only in its infancy and did not muster its forces to fight against it. Therefore, German secularism, devoid of political sharpness, acquires a moralizing, moralistic character. It is directed against a false lawyer, an insignificant scientist, against the striving of the middle class for titles. Its best representatives are Lichtenberg (1742-1799), Rabener (1714-1771) and Liskov (1701-1760).
In the same epoch S. flourishes in England. But in England, S. was associated with the struggle of the aristocracy against firmly established bourgeois relations. Already in the second half of the XVII century. Dryden acted as an ardent defender of the aristocracy and a denunciator of bourgeois narrow-mindedness and bourgeois virtue. Along with S. on the life and customs of the bourgeoisie, he gives sharply satirical sketches of the political opponents of the aristocracy. The most significant monuments of English S. and in the XVIII century. were created by aristocratic writers: Pop (see), Swift (see) "Gulliver's Travels", Sheridan (see) "School of Scandal". The masterpiece of English S. is Gulliver's Travels. Swift's satire has little to do with religion, which is the main target for S. of the French Enlightenment. The aristocratic character of S. is sharply manifested in the desire to humiliate and ridicule all legislators and social reformers, who thought "to teach monarchs the knowledge of their true interests, which are based on the interests of their peoples." Swift's skepticism about the possible transformations of social reality is associated with his deepest misanthropy. His criticism was supposed to reveal not only the relativity of all human institutions, but also the relativity of the human personality itself. But the positive value of Swift's satire is in the artistic sharpness of its anti-bourgeois character.
The anti-bourgeois satirical line was continued in English literature by Byron (see). Satiric motifs distinguished themselves in his work with exceptional sharpness, aimed both at exposing the deceit and holiness of the aristocracy, and the stupidity and narrow-mindedness of the bourgeoisie.
S. became smaller after the French bourgeois revolution of the late 18th century, when the problems of destroying the feudal system hostile to the bourgeois order were basically resolved. We now find strong elements of S. only in the work of oppositional democratic writers, primarily in Beranger (see). The cowardice and betrayal of the bourgeoisie after the July days was denounced by Barbier (see) in his "Yambs" and "Satires", V. Hugo (see) in his political lyrics (in "Chatiments"). The most striking manifestation of S. XIX century. is the political lyrics of Heine, (see), directed against feudalism that has not been eliminated in Germany, against the cowardly German bourgeoisie (“The Winter's Tale”) of S.'s defense in lyric poetry also Herweg and Freiligrath.
Bourgeois S. by the end of the 19th century. gradually turns into skepticism and irony. Here it sometimes reaches great acuteness (A. France, Jean Giraudoux and many others), but never again plays such a huge world-historical role as it played in the days when it was imbued with the pathos of the struggle against the feudal order. We find strong elements of S. by the end of the 19th century and at the beginning. 20th century in English literature by Bernard Shaw (see). His S. is directed against capitalism, the clergy, and the bourgeoisie. But the half-hearted nature of their rejection of the bourgeois system deprives them of that revolutionary audacity, without which their S. turns into only talented wit.
Russian S. is poorer than Western European. In the West, S. developed during the centuries-old struggle of the third estate with the old order. In Russia, S., indignant and scourging, reaches its heights when the ideologists of revolutionary democracy (Saltykov-Shchedrin, Nekrasov) appeared on the stage of Russian history.
In previous eras, S. also more than once became the dominant genre in Russian literature - let us recall the heyday of Russian S. in the second half of the 18th century. But this S., in the extremely apt expression of Dobrolyubov, "tried to reduce, not to exterminate evil." Not to mention the abundant satirical journalism in which the ruling elites were directly involved (“There were also fables”, “All sorts of things”, “And this and that”, “Neither this nor that”, “Day work”, “Useful with pleasant ”, “Mixture”, “Drone”), even Novikov’s publications (“Parnassian Scribbler”, “Evenings”, “Painter”, “Purse”), satires by Kantemir, Sumarokov, Fonvizin’s comedies passed over in silence such egregious phenomena as, for example, serfdom right. A sharp contrast to S. of this type are the satirical revelatory paintings of Radishev's Travels from St. Petersburg to Moscow.
Griboedov (see) in his comedy branded the Molchalins and Skalozubs. Gogol satirically showed the "dead souls" of landlord Russia. And contrary to Gogol's subjective tendencies, his S. had a profoundly revolutionary significance. The nobility (Griboyedov, Gogol), which objectively played a huge revolutionary role, was replaced by revolutionary democratic style, which contained a resolute rejection of the feudal-serf, tsarist-bureaucratic system, no less resolute criticism of predatory Russian capitalism and the cowardice of the liberal bourgeoisie. This S. is fundamentally different from the noble S., which came not from denial, but from self-criticism. Gogol, for example. strove all his life to create positive images and was dissatisfied with his comic characters. Saltykov (see) in them found the deepest expression of his ideological and artistic. ideas. Saltykov gives complete decomposition, comprehensively shows the worthlessness, and most importantly, the harmfulness of his Judas Golovlev. His best works - the brilliant grotesques "Lord Golovlev", "The History of a City" and "Pompadours and Pompadours" - are extraordinary in their strength and accuracy of exposing autocracy, bureaucratic stupidity and stupidity, feudal barbarism and tyranny, liberal complacency. In the immortal image of Judas Golovlev, Shchedrin gave a great symbol of the degeneration of the entire system.
We also find strong satirical elements in the work of the great poet of revolutionary democracy Nekrasov (see) (“Reflections at the front door”, “Poor and elegant”, “Contemporaries”, etc.). Against the new enemy of the working people, predatory capital and the kulaks, the satire is directed Ch. Uspensky (see) (“Morals of Rasteryaeva Street”). After the years of reaction, S. associated a new flourishing with the revolution of 1905. During the years 1905-1908, a huge number of satirical magazines appeared, mostly liberal-democratic. But in the same years, proletarian S., satirical workers' magazines were already being created, the direct successor of which was the initiator of proletarian satire Demyan Bedny, and S. of the Bolshevik newspapers Zvezda and Pravda. Proletarian S. reaches its heights in the work of M. Gorky.
Soviet proletarian S. differs from the S. of the capitalist classes not only in its subject matter. It represents significant qualitative modifications. In a proprietary society, S. was either a denial of the entire social system as a whole or a criticism of individual parties this system. Soviet socialism is directed primarily against class-hostile reality, against its direct class enemy, who opposes the Soviet socialist system. When Soviet socialism is directed at the shortcomings of its own class reality, it reveals these shortcomings as alien class stratifications, as the result of a different, hostile social system, for these shortcomings are not created by the socialist society that is being built, but by the inexhaustible consciousness of the owner. M. Koltsov sharply formulates the meaning of Soviet satire: “Is satire possible, the nature of which is dissatisfaction with the existing, angry or bilious attitude towards the existing reality in a country where there is no exploitation and where socialism is being built? Yes, it is possible. With the blade of satire, the Soviet writer fights against the baseness of sycophancy, ignorance and stupidity. The working class is the last in the history of classes, and it will be the last to laugh” (Speech at the International Congress of Writers). Proletarian socialism is not only aimed at criticizing its shortcomings. Above all, it denounces the hostile capitalist system. It is only from proletarian positions that true conversion to the capitalist system is now possible. The bourgeois satirist does not know the recipes for improving and correcting his system and cannot reconcile himself to its complete rejection. This makes his S. half-hearted, deprives her of sharpness and effectiveness. Only by going over to proletarian positions can he give a comprehensive satirical critique. Soviet S. is busy exposing shortcomings in its own ranks. On this path, she managed to conquer a number of diverse genres: the fables-satires of D. Poor, the satires of Mayakovsky, the short stories by Zoshchenko and the great satirical novels of Ilf and Petrov, the essays and feuilletons of M. Koltsov, the comedies of Bezymensky ("The Shot"), Kirshon (" A wonderful alloy"), Konstantin Finn. This introduction of S. into almost all genres, this variety of satirical forms already in itself proves how necessary and relevant Soviet S. Bibliography:
Theory: Lehmann R., Satire und Humor, in his book. "Poetik", 2 Aufl., Munchen, 1919; Wiegand J., Satire; RehmW., Satirischer Roman, in Vol. Reallexikon der deutschen Literaturgeschichte, Bd. III, Berlin, 1928-1929. General works: Hannay J., Lectures on satire and satirists, L., 1854; Soldini E., Breve storia della satira, Cremona, 1891; Schneegans H., Geschichte der grotesken Satire, Strassb., 1894. Antique satire: Fraenkel E., Das Reifen der horazischen Satire, in Sat. "Festschrift fur R. Reitzenstein", Lpz., 1931. Italian satire: CianV., La satira italiana, Milano, 1924. English satire: Cranstoun G., ed., Satirical poems of the time of Reformation, 2 vv., Edinb. , 1891-1833 (texts); Alden R.M., The rise of formal satire in England under classical influence, Philadelphia, 1899; Hazlitt W., Lectures on the English comic writers, L., 1900; Tucker S.M., Verse satire in England before the Renaissance, N.Y., 1909; Previte-Orton C.W., Political satire in English poetry, N.Y., 1910; Russell F.T., Satire in the Victorian novel, N.Y., 1920; Walker H., English satire and satirists, L., 1925; Cazamian L., The development of English humour, N.Y., 1930. German satire: FlogelK.F., Geschichte des Grotesk-Komischen, neubearb. v. F. W. Ebeling, Lpz., 1862; Same, neubearb. v. M. Bauer, 2 Bde, Munchen, 1914; Ebeling F.W., Geschichte der komischen Literatur in Deutschland seit der Mitte des XVIII Jahrhunderts, 3 Bde, Lpz., 1862-1869; Schade O., Satiren und Pasquine aus der Reformationszeit, 2 Bde, 2 Aufl., Hannover, 1863; Geiger L., Deutsche Satiriker der XVI Jahrhunderts, Berlin, 1878; GlassM., Klassische und romantische Satire, Stuttg., 1905; Klamroth H., Beitrage zur Entwicklungsgeschichte der Traumsatire im XVII u. XVIII Jh., Diss., Bonn, 1912; Satirische Bibliothek, Quellen u. Urkunden zur Geschichte der deutschen satire, hrsgb. v. O.Mausser, Bd. I-II, Munchen, 1913; Wiegand J., Geschichte der deutschen Dichtung in Strenger Systematik... dargestellt, Koln, 1922. French satire: Lenient C., La satire en France au Moyen-age, P., 1859; His own, La Satire en France ou la litterature militante au XVI-e siecle, P., 1866; Gottschalk W., Die humoristische Gestalt in der franzosischen Literatur, Hdlb., 1928; MaxH., Die Satire in der Franzosischen Publizistik unt. bes. Berucks. d. French Witzblattes, Die Entwicklung v. d. Anfangen bis zum Jahre 1880, Diss., Munchen, 1934; LippsT., Komik und Humor, 2 Aufl., Lpz., 1922; Naguevsky D.I., Roman satire and Juvenal. Literary-critical research, Mitava, 1879; OstolopovN. F., Dictionary of ancient and new poetry, part 3, St. Petersburg, 1821; Belinsky V.G., Russian literature in 1843, “Notes of the Fatherland”, vol. 32, 1844 (statements about satire when evaluating Gogol's work); Dobrolyubov N.A., Interlocutors of lovers of the Russian word, “Complete coll. sochin. ”, under the general editorship. P.I. Lebedev-Polyansky, vol. I, (M.), 1934 (originally in Sovremennik, 1856, books VIII and IX, signed by N. Laibov); His own, Answer to the remarks of A.D. Galakhov regarding the previous article, ibid., vol. I (M.), 1934 (originally in Sovremennik, 1856, book IX; Galakhov’s article - Criticism on “There were also fables (in Otechestvennye Zapiski, 1856, Oct.); Him, On the degree of participation of the people in the development of Russian literature, ibid., vol. I, (M.), 1934 (originally in Sovremennik, 1858, book. 2 with the signature: “-bov”); His own, Russian satire in the age of Catherine, ibid., vol. II, (M.), 1935 (in connection with the work of A. Afanasyev mentioned below; originally in Sovremennik, 1859, book 10, unsigned); Afanasyev A.N., Russian satirical magazines 1769-1774, M., 1859; The same, new edition, Kazan, 1921; Pokrovsky V., On Russian satirical magazines: “Drone”, “Hellish Post ”, “Riddle”, “Painter”, “Hard-working ant and others, M., 1897 Him, the dandies in the satirical literature of the 18th century, M., 1903; Lemke M.K., From the history of Russian satirical journalism (1857-1864 ), "The World of God", 1903, No. 6-8; The same, in his book: Essays on the history of Russian censorship and journalism of the XIX century, St. Petersburg, 1904; Gornfeld A., Satire, "Encyclopedic Dictionary", ed. F.A., I.A. Efron, semit. 56, St. Petersburg, 1900; Chebotarevskaya Anastasia From life and literature. (Russian satire of our days), "Education", 1906, No. 5; Masanov I.F., Russian satire and humorous journalism. Bibliographic description, issue I-III, Vladimir, 1910-1913 (“Proceedings of the Vlad. Academician of the Archival Commission”, book XI, XV-XVIII); Sakulin P.N., Sociological satire, Bulletin of Education, 1914, No. 4; satirical Sat. No. 1 - Berangerovtsy, M., 1914; Same, Sat. 2 - Heinevtsy, M., 1917; BegakB., KravtsovN., MorozovA., Russian literary parody, M. - L., 1930; Imaginary poetry, Materials on the history of poetic parody of the 18th and 19th centuries, edited by Y. Tynyanov, ed. "Academia", M. - L., 1931; epigram and satire. From the history of the literary struggle of the 19th century, vol. I, 1800-1840, composition. V. Orlov, vol. II, 1840-1880, comp. A. Ostrovsky, ed. "Academia", M. - L., 1931-1932; KravtsovN. and MorozovA., Satire of the 60s, ed. and before. N. Belchikova, ed. "Academia", M. - L., 1932; Poets of Iskra, ed. and note. I. Yampolsky, (L. ), 1933 (Poet's Library, edited by M. Gorky); Vinogradov Nikolay, Satire and humor in 1905-1907. Bibliographic index, Bibliographic News, 1916, No. 3-4; BotsyanovskyV. and GolerbakhE., Russian satire of the first revolution of 1905-1906, L., 1925; DreidenS., 1905 in satire and humor, L., 1925; ChukovskyK. and DreidenS., Russian revolution in satire and humor: L., 1925; Album of revolutionary satire 1905-1906, ed. S.I. Mitskevich, M., 1926 (Museum of the Revolution of the USSR); IsakovS., 1905 in satire and caricature, L., 1928; Timonich A.A., Russian satirical and humorous magazines of 1905-1907. in connection with satirical magazines of the 18th and 19th centuries. Materials for bibliography, M., 1930 (glassographer, ed.). A-v Yu., Satirical literature and preparation for the coup. (From memories), "Time", 1917, No. 887; FricheV., Satire, Satirical magazines, Encyclopedic Dictionary, ed. "Br. A. and I. Granat and Co., ed. 7, b.g.; Maevich A., Humor and satire, "Journalist", 1925, No. 4; Shafir Ya., Comic and satirical techniques. (On the characteristics of satirical journalism in 1917), "Journalist", 1927, No. 9-10; L. L., Satire in 1917, "Reader and Writer", 1928, No. 10; Shafir A., ​​On the question of the satirical novel, "Print and Revolution", 1929, No. 12; Yakubovsky, G., On the satire of our days, Literaturnaya Gazeta, 1929, No. 12; Boychevsky V., Ways of Soviet satire, "Soviet Land", 1931, No. 1; Nusinov I., Questions of the genre in proletarian literature, "Literature and Art", 1931, No. 2-3; Mezier 4. V., Dictionary index on book science, P., 1924, pp. 277-279, 308-309. see also the literature on individual satires. magazines and satirical writers.

Literary encyclopedia. - In 11 tons; M .: publishing house of the Communist Academy, Soviet Encyclopedia, Fiction. Edited by V. M. Friche, A. V. Lunacharsky. 1929-1939 .

Satire

(lat. satira), one of the species comic, a specific way of depicting reality, the purpose of which is to reveal it as something inconsistent, untenable and cause laughter. Satire creates an image of reality, highlighting the most ridiculous or negative features in it. For this, he resorts to grotesque, irony etc. A characteristic feature of satire is a negative attitude towards the object of the image and, at the same time, the presence of a positive ideal, against which the negative features of the depicted are revealed.
Satire as a genre appeared in ancient Roman literature - one of the genres of lyrics with accusatory orientation. Then she began to define the specifics of many genres: fables, comedies, pamphlet, feuilleton, epigrams etc., it can also permeate any other genre: a satirical story, a satirical novel, etc. A fantastic, allegorical satire stands out - ridicule using Aesopian language, the derivation of real people and events under the guise of animals or personified concepts. Such satire is characteristic of fables. In prose, this technique was used by J. swift("Gulliver's Travels"), M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin(fairy tales, "The history of one city"). Psychological satire studies the negative traits of the human personality, their origin and nature: “Dead Souls” by N.V. Gogol, "Lord Golovlyovs" by M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin.
In ancient literature, satire is not only a genre formation; she infiltrates comedy Plautus And Terence, in an adventurous novel: "Satyricon" by Petronius, "The Golden Ass" Apuleia. In medieval literature, the satirical genres of fablio and farce; the Renaissance gives rise to social satire. Unlike farce, which makes fun of funny situations, and fablios (funny stories about the ridiculous situations that heroes find themselves in), Renaissance satire ridicules the vices of society as a whole: "Praise stupidity" Erasmus of Rotterdam, "The Decameron" by J. Boccaccio, "Gargantua and Pantagruel" F. Rabelais, "Don Quixote" M. Cervantes, comedy W. Shakespeare. Classicism gravitates toward satire of strictly defined types; e.g., masks of a hypocrite, a hypocrite, etc. have found vivid expression in comedies Molière. In the Age of Enlightenment, the philosophical satire of D. Diderot, Voltaire, C. Montesquieu, J. Swift. In the 19th and 20th centuries satire penetrates all genres, exposing the vices of modern civilization: M. Twain, A. France, G. wells, TO. Capek, I. Hasek, G.K. Chesterton, B. Show, G. Mann, B. Brecht etc. Satire modernism has a hint of hopelessness, mockery of the absurdity of the world (E. Ionesco).
In Russian literature satire appears in con. 17th century: democratic stories "The Tale of the Hawk Moth", "Shemyakin's Court", "Kalyazinskaya Petition" and poems Simeon of Polotsk. In the era of classicism and enlightenment, A.D. actively worked in the genre of satire. Cantemir, N. I. Novikov, I. A. Krylov; the satirical beginning penetrated the genres of comedy, travel and others in A.D. Sumarokova, D.I. Fonvizina, A. N. Radishcheva, I. A. Krylova. In the 19th and 20th centuries the genre of satire as such is rarely developed (“Satires in Prose” by M.E. Saltykov-Shchedrin), but the satirical beginning colors the genres of comedy, parody, and novel: “Woe from Wit” by A.S. Griboyedov, "The Government Inspector" and "Dead Souls" by N.V. Gogol, comedies by A.N. Ostrovsky, satirical poetry of the Iskra magazine. In the literature of the 20th century. satirical tendencies are manifested in the work of V.V. Mayakovsky, MM. Zoshchenko, M. A. Bulgakov, A.P. Platonov, E. L. Schwartz, I. Ilf and E. Petrov and others. A special place in the history of satire is occupied by the work of Russian absurdists - poets of the group OBERIU: A. I. Vvedensky, D. I. Kharms.

Literature and language. Modern illustrated encyclopedia. - M.: Rosman. Under the editorship of prof. Gorkina A.P. 2006 .

Satire

SATIRE. - In a somewhat indefinite and vague sense, any literary work is called satire, in which a certain definite attitude to the phenomena of life is expressed, namely, condemnation and ridicule of them, exposing them to general laughter, shame and indignation. In this sense, an epic can also be a satire - a fairy tale, a fable, a legend in the genus "Reinecke the Fox", or "Aeneid inside out", a story and a novel (many of Saltykov's satires, adjoining artistic everyday life, like his "Lord Golovlevs"), and comedy, like "The Inspector General" and "Woe from Wit" and lyrical works. The satirical attitude of literature to the phenomena of life must be distinguished from the humorous one (cf. Laughter and especially Humor ). In contrast to humor, a special mood in which the author's laughter is all the time softened by the author's explicit or hidden sympathy for the person or phenomenon being ridiculed, the laughter of satire is more rational. He is an instrument of struggle and indignation, he does not smile and laugh merrily, but brings the phenomenon of life to public disgrace, ridicule and condemnation. With this last feature, an appeal to the public, satire reveals its always journalistic essence. It is a poetic denunciation of reality in the name of a more or less definite social ideal. In its historical origin, namely in ancient Roman literature, satire is a poetic, lyrical poem of more or less significant volume, in which we find a more or less negative or sharply condemning and indignant depiction of the properties and qualities of individual typical individuals or a more or less vast area. , or groups of persons and phenomena. From satire, according to the definitely personal content of attacks and denunciations in the work, pamphlet and libel should be distinguished; the latter is characterized most of all by the moral impurity of the author's motives in his attack and denunciations against one or another person, while a pamphlet is sometimes only a publicistic speech, but can also be an artistic satire against a certain person, standing at the full height of responsible free speech. In connection with this moral and social content of satire, its artistic value also depends on the correspondence between its lyrical uplift and the height of the satirist's ideal, on the one hand, and between the significance of the denounced phenomenon, on the other. Lyrical subjective coloring in relation to types and phenomena usually deprives satire of objective artistic significance and often gives it a fleeting meaning. Satire is rapidly aging, for example, Saltykov’s purely satirical essays are no longer directly understandable to our time, and only those phenomena of satire survive in which the author, in the private and transient phenomena of life, caught gradual and enduring universal human and general social weaknesses and vices, persistent features of individual psychology, perversions of social psychology that are constantly being repeated and put forward. As a special poetic form, satire appeared in the civil culture of ancient Rome. It arose from purely folk art, which, in general, in the development of new literatures, repeatedly and constantly turns to satire, as an instrument of self-defense and self-consolation from the strong and powerful. The name satire comes from the word satura - a dish of hodgepodge - but it is also associated with the name of the mocking Greco-Roman demigods - half animals - satyrs. Roman satire, beginning with Ennius and Lucilius, flourished in the hands of Horace, Persius, and especially Juvenal, who determined its form for later European classicism. In medieval and new Europe, satire went beyond the framework of the old form and, developing as an independent mood and creativity, had complex and diverse destinies, putting forward a number of well-known names: in France - Rabelais, Boileau, Voltaire, from new ones - Courier, Berenger, Barbier, V .hugo; in England - the brilliant satirist Swift, of absolutely exceptional importance; in Germany - from Brant's "Ship of Jesters" there are a large number of satirists who do not have a common European significance; above all, of course, the brilliant Heine with "Atta Troll"; the Italians - Ariosto, Gozzi, Alfieri; among the Spaniards - the world luminary (rather, however, a humorist) - Cervantes. Russian satire lived already in the 17th century and earlier in the semi-folk story, the work of buffoons, etc. (“the parable of the hawker”, satires on the court of Shemyaka and Yersh Yershovich, the son of Shchetinnikov, etc.). Since the 18th century satire develops in the Russian age of classicism, as a special lyrical classical form, starting from the satires of Cantemir; I have to name: Nikolaev, Kapnist, Dmitriev, Prince. Vyazemsky, etc. But especially important is the magnificent development of satire, as an element of denunciation and the comic. Satire, like an element, captured all journalism in satirical magazines (starting from the 18th century) and comedy, and especially a story, a story, a novel. The classic form of satire XIX century disappears, but the stronger its influence, like a trend that a rare talented writer does not capture: here are the lyrics - Pushkin: - “For the recovery of Lucullus” and others. “Chronicle of the village of Goryukhin”; Ryleev - "Temporary worker"; Lermontov - "Duma" and others; Nekrasov - “Thinking at the front door”, “Poor and elegant” and many others. his other works, and playwrights (Fonvizin, Griboyedov, Gogol, Ostrovsky), and novelists (Gogol with a poem - "Dead Souls" and especially Saltykov-Shchedrin, whose scourging and biting satire sometimes reaches Swift's strength). The history of Russian satire has not been studied in detail either in relation to its classical, now clearly and long extinct, poetic form, or even more so in relation to the huge satirical content of the Russian story and novel and everyday comedy, which are closely connected with the shifts of class moods in society. We have to refer the reader to common works on the history of literature and on the study of individual satirical writers.

V. Cheshikhin-Vetrinsky. Literary encyclopedia: Dictionary of literary terms: In 2 volumes / Edited by N. Brodsky, A. Lavretsky, E. Lunin, V. Lvov-Rogachevsky, M. Rozanov, V. Cheshikhin-Vetrinsky. - M.; L.: Publishing house L. D. Frenkel, 1925

Satires in the era of classicism

Satyrs in Russia

In Russia, satires became widespread along with classicism. The first satires in the history of Russian literature were written by Antioch Cantemir at the beginning of the 18th century. These nine satyrs have become classics. In the 19th century, satires were still not widespread, but today they are completely forgotten.


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See what "Satire (genre)" is in other dictionaries:

    A kind of comic (see Aesthetics), which differs from other types (humor, irony) by the sharpness of the denunciation. S. at its inception was a certain lyrical genre. It was a poem, often significant in volume, content to ... ... Literary Encyclopedia

    - (lat. satira) a manifestation of the comic in art, which is a poetic humiliating denunciation of phenomena using various comic means: sarcasm, irony, hyperbole, grotesque, allegory, parody, etc. Success was achieved in it ... Wikipedia

    GENRE- literary (from French genre genus, type), historically emerging type of literary work (novel, poem, ballad, etc.); in the theoretical concept of Zh., features characteristic of a more or less extensive group of works are generalized ... ... Literary Encyclopedic Dictionary

    - (lat.). A kind of poetry that aims to ridicule weaknesses and vices modern society. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910. SATIRE lat. satira, ancient lat. satura, from lat. satur, well-fed, full; at first… … Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

    - (Latin satira), 1) a way of displaying the comic in art: annihilating ridicule of phenomena that seem to the author to be vicious. The power of satire depends on the social and moral significance of the position of the satirist, on the tonality of comic means... Modern Encyclopedia

    - (lat. satira) 1) a way of displaying the comic in art, consisting in a devastating ridicule of phenomena that the author considers vicious. The power of satire depends on the social significance of the position taken by the satirist, on the effectiveness of comic ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

    SATIRE, s, female. 1. A work of art that sharply and mercilessly denounces the negative phenomena of reality. 2. Convicting, scourging ridicule. | adj. satirical, oh, oh. C. genre. C. style. Explanatory dictionary of Ozhegov. S.I. Ozhegov, N.Yu.… … Explanatory dictionary of Ozhegov

    - (lat. satira) - annihilating ridicule of reality, revealed in art. image as something perverted and internally untenable. According to the classic definition of F. Schiller, who first considered S. not as specific. lit. genre, but how ... ... Philosophical Encyclopedia

    - (lat. satira, from the earlier satura Satura, literally a mixture, all sorts of things) a kind of comic (See Comic); ruthless, destructive rethinking of the object of the image (and criticism), resolved by laughter, frank or latent, ... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia

    s; and. [lat. satira] 1. A method of manifestation of the comic in art, consisting in annihilating ridicule of phenomena that seem to the author to be vicious. 2. A work of art sharply and mercilessly exposing the negative phenomena of reality. ... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

Books

  • Latvian Folk Jokes, . Almost all genres of Latvian folklore contain elements of humor and satire; they are especially characteristic of opal songs, parts of household tales and proverbs. However, the most widely...

What is satire? Let's answer this question together. We will also understand what satire is in literature. The definition, brief and concise, can be given as follows: this is a kind of comic that differs from others (irony, humor) by the sharpness of the denunciation.

At its inception, it was a lyrical genre, which was a poem, usually quite large in volume. Its content was a mockery of certain events or persons.

Satire as a genre

Satire as a genre first appeared in Roman literature. This word itself comes from the name of mythical creatures in Latin, satyrs - demigods, half animals with a mocking disposition. Philologically this concept It is also connected with another word, satura, in the common people meaning a dish of hodgepodge, which spoke of a mixture of different sizes (Greek, as well as Saturnian verse) and the presence of various descriptions of phenomena and facts in satire, unlike other genres of lyrics, which had a certain strictly limited area of ​​the image. That's what satire is. The definition of it as a genre can be better understood by referring to the works of Persius, Horace, and especially Juvenal, in which Roman satire provided the highest examples.

Satire as a technique

Over time, it has lost the significance of a specific genre, as happened with other genres that were considered classical (idyll, elegy, etc.). The main feature of satire was a revealing mockery, which determined its essence. She fulfilled this appointment with the help of various genres and forms. However, whenever the forms of antiquity were revived in literature, the old genre satire reappeared along with them. For example, this was the case in Russian literature in the second half of the 18th century, when it was used as a classical form by Sumarokov, Kantemir and others. At the same time, there were also satirical magazines with caricatures, stories, feuilletons, as well as satirical comedy.

What is the basis of satire?

What is satire, we found out. Let us now understand what underlies it. At the heart of satire, regardless of genre, is comedy. Laughter has always been and remains a good means of influencing society. The comic, performing social functions, has a corresponding form: satirical, humorous and ironic. In an effective struggle with the comically depicted object lies social function satire and laughter. This is its difference from irony and humor. It also differs from any other forms of comic satire in its strong-willed orientation, activity and purposefulness. There is always denial in laughter. Together with him, therefore, indignation and indignation sound no less strong. Sometimes they are so strong that they practically drown out the funny or push it into the background.

Can satire do without comic tricks?

The fact that the comic effect in satire is not too pronounced has given rise to some scientists to argue that it can do without comic tricks at all, expose the hostile and insignificant only with its indignation. However, indignation in itself, even with the greatest tension and strength, does not create satire. For example, the poems "On the Death of Pushkin" and "Duma" by Lermontov, with all the pathos of indignation and protest, are still not satirical. Elements of indignation and laughter in satire can be combined in different ways. But it is impossible to construct it outside the comic. Denying it as a necessary element, we will come to identify this concept with negation, criticism in general. And we will not be able to clearly answer the question of what satire is. On the plane of satire (for example, in Saltykov-Shchedrin) and in terms of direct denial and criticism (in L.N. Tolstoy), the exposure of the bureaucracy and the Russian autocracy can be expressed.

Mayakovsky satirically denounced the bourgeoisie and philistinism, Gorky the same, but in the form of a direct denial. That's what satire is in literature. Defining it in the text is usually not very difficult - we do it intuitively.

The specifics of the concept of "satire"

The specificity of the concept of "satire" lies not only in the fact that it reveals harmful, negative or shameful phenomena, but also in the fact that this is always carried out by means of the comic law, according to which indignation is a single whole with comic exposure, and the exposed is depicted as normal, so that later through this it is funny to discover that this norm is only an appearance that obscures evil. This idea is confirmed by the whole history of satire. Let us recall, for example, such authors as Beaumarchais, Rabelais, Swift, Voltaire, Saltykov-Shchedrin. Reading them, we understand what satire is in literature. The definition of this concept was given above, so if in doubt, you can always resort to it. The classic division of satire into "pathetic" and "laughing", which Schiller makes in one of his articles, thus has no sufficient basis.

Types of satire

Satires on the enemy can be a denial of the entire existing socio-political system. This type is associated with the names of the greatest satirists, who in different eras gave brilliant examples of denial and criticism of the social reality of the era contemporary to these authors. These include Swift, Rabelais, Saltykov-Shchedrin.

The second type of satire is when the author calls not for the destruction of the entire system that gave rise to vices, but for the correction of some of them. Such satire is aimed mainly at customs, everyday life, cultural customs. It is reflected in the work of Moliere, who criticized the rising class. The well-known image of the "philistine in the nobility" is complemented by a number of similar images by this author ("Funny coynesses", "George Danden") and is constructed in such a way that it is funny for all its shortcomings, but not negative.

In the same plan, Figaro is given by Beaumarchais. Such is Fonvizin, who sought to put forward a cultured, Europeanized nobility in place of an ignorant patriarchal one.

What is satire, we figured it out. We hope that the material was presented in a clear and understandable way. We also tried to briefly describe what satire is in literature. The authors indicated by us were not chosen by chance - these are the brightest representatives of the satirical direction.