Filed in archive Satires on July 23, 2010

What is Menippean Satire?

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There are several different types of satire, but none are as interesting as menippean satire. Menippean satire refers to a work of satirical literature that focuses on not one but several different subjects in which it aims to make fun of. Menippean satire also moves along from one subject to the next quite swiftly, so it seems that the satirist isn't just bashing one idea to death. With all these targets of ridicule pieced together in a single work of prose the reader is visited by many different thoughts and possibilities to ponder as they are relayed through the text. Mennippean satire is also believed to focus much less on individuals. Instead it picks on core stereotypes and character classifications.

One fine example of Mennippean satire is Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift. In this novel Gulliver jumps from one of several situations to the next as he travels around the world. Gulliver's Travels ridicules the then British government, ponders the thought of if men are corrupt by nature or made corrupt by their surroundings, and even questions the humanity of certain kinds of people.