Satire devices

physical humor

type of comedy that relies on visual jokes [often involving physical pain] or exaggerations

situational humor

type of comedy that arises from a particular context or life experience, rather than words used

• need to know what’s happening to understand

verbal irony

saying what is not meant

hyperbole

exaggeration for rhetorical effect

understatement

saying less than is meant

sarcasm

verbal irony that is biting, harsh, and critical. Not all verbal irony is sarcasm!

incongruity

presentation of something out of place or absurd in relation to its surroundings

reversal

inversion of normal order (a child making decisions or punishing the parent)

parody

the imitation of the style or technique of some person in order to ridicule the original

persona

a role or character adopted by an author or an actor

• personality

caricature

an exaggeration of a particular trait or feature of a person or situation

• physical

ridicule

the subjection of someone or something contemptuous to dismissive language or behavior.

dark humor

a comic style that makes light of subjects that are generally considered serious or taboo