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Nathan WrightApril 1st, 2019ENC 1102 – Faulconer 230pmThe Satirical Stance of Saturday Night LiveMany people feel that you have to be able to make fun of yourself and take criticism in order to succeed. This holds true at all levels in life, at the small scale of just simply making fun of a person’s flaw or on a much grander scale, like an entire religion for instance. With this self-deprecation comes a genre used in many different ways but ultimately used to ridicule issues in all forms in society: Satire. The use of satirical rhetoric is as old as all of societies issues, and with us being human, there is always problems in our society as we’re bound to make mistakes repeatedly. As one must be able to make fun of themselves, satire must be able to scorn itself. As stated by Kerry Dirk in “Navigating Genres,” all genres are used with a specific purpose, hoping to achieve a certain reaction, and the user chooses which genre they will employ based on what type of reaction they are hoping to derive from the audience. Satire aims to ridicule the mistakes, hypocrisies, and hubris of human beings, and hopefully inspire change in the process. It can be employed in many different fashions but ultimately, satire is used to often raise awareness of a problem in any facet of life by deriding the aspects of the problem being spoken on. This can often be confused with general comedy. This confusion is warranted, however, as many satirical works tend to have comedic elements within. There are many crafts today that use satire and comedy hand in hand when composing their scripts such as the sketch comedy Saturday Night Live, and the cartoon works of The Simpsons and Family Guy. All three comment on societal issues with satire while still being humorous. With this in mind, the question remains, “What is the difference between the genres of Satire and Comedy?” (See Appendix A)Overall, the general features of satire are well known. Per the article regarding satire in the Salem Press Encyclopedia of Literature written by Michael Mazzei, “Satire employs numerous techniques, including humor, irony, sarcasm, exaggeration, and mockery.” These many different forms of satire all attempt to ridicule a subject but with different approaches. Humor is self-explanatory as the use of this approach is hoping to make light of a subject and generate a laugh from the audience being addressed. Irony can often times be humorous but rather than going directly for a laugh, this method uses words that mean the opposite of what is being said or a situation that ends up the opposite of what is expected. Sarcasm is similar to irony but is different in that it tends to insult a subject or show frustration towards it. As for exaggeration, it is used when the thing being discussed is greater or larger than it actually is, just like how one exaggerates details to make a good story. Mockery is probably the most common method of satire, used in today’s shows one of them being our subject and previously listed example Saturday Night Live, along with The Daily Show, and The Colbert Report. All three shows use all of these methods listed to create satirical content about today’s political and societal issues in America and abroad in foreign nations. On the other hand, there is comedy. Due to satire’s methods of mockery, irony, and humor, many get the two confused as the two genres tend to intertwine when presented in a text or show. Comedy differs in that the characters and subject at hand are in humorous and laughable situations, and aim purely for laughs. This differs from satire’s ridiculing approach, which aims to speak on issues rather than purely aiming for being funny and humorous to the audience. Referring to a different Salem Press Encyclopedia article, this one regarding comedy by Leah Jacob, “Comedy is an art and although there may be certain set characteristics said to identify comedy, the experience of amusement is subjective.” Satire is a form of comedy however, which does of course cause confusion in the relationship of the two genres. Other forms of the delivery of the comedic genre include but is not limited to: irony, high comedy, low comedy, and dark comedy. Irony being previously discussed is when words or situations are the opposite of what they actually mean or what is expected, creating a laugh from the audience. At opposite ends of the spectrum are high and low comedy, “high comedy is associated with intellect and involves sophisticated characterizations and plots, while low comedy is marked by coarse language and situations that are often farcical in nature.” Dark comedy however, is in essence an art of its own, requiring a sprinkling of humor on a touchy subject to get the right laugh.Our subject, Saturday Night Live takes center stage as we will assess the show’s placement on the fine line between satire and comedy. For years shows, movies, and texts have tight roped the line between the two genres, often times blurring the differences between them and causing an association between the two. Quickly, I will provide an example of a show doing this with The Simpsons. In 2008, the popular cartoon received its own movie and within the plot, the family is on the run from the government as they hope to prevent the bombing of Springfield after it has become excessively polluted. During this goose chase the government performs to track down the family, one conversation they have on a train back to Springfield is overheard by the NSA as the writers reference the Patriot Act passed following the 2001 9/11 attacks. The act allows the government to access people’s devices and listen in on conversations to track down wanted criminals. In the movie, when the conversation is overheard an NSA agent loudly exclaims in excitement, “Hey everyone, we got one! The government finally found someone we’re looking for!” This of course references the widespread pushback to the passage of the act as it was perceived as an invasion of privacy. The joke went over well and many people not only laughed because the scene was funny, but also because it made light of something that caused so many issues in society and made fun of something traditionally not joked about in the public light. This of course is nowhere near the first occurrence of the use of satire as it dates back to BC times.Now, let’s get down to business. The main purpose for this research among others is to answer the previously listed question of “What’s the difference between satire and comedy?” and to spell out those differences following a deep dive into the elements of both genres using our subject Saturday Night Live as the focus. SNL employs both genres actively, often intertwining the two. The best way to find these elements is to break apart sketches regarding a certain subject or category of subjects and find why it is satire by examining what exactly is being commented on within the sketch. The results yielded from the research performed indicate that this rhetorical analysis of sorts is effective in illustrating the contrast between satire and comedy and why SNL is one and not the other. The following report is structured as such to include 3 sections following this introduction. The first being a method section to spell out the process in which the research was performed. The inclusion of this section will allow the reader to see clearly what was done to reach the results and findings that will later be listed. If one wanted to recreate the research, the section will allow someone to do just that, going step-by-step to do so. The methods section is then followed by the listing of the results found from the conduction of the research. This results section will allow readers to learn what finding arose from the research process. And if they felt inclined to recreate the research, it will allow the comparison of findings. The final section in the wake of this introduction will be a discussion section. Within this section, I will discuss my findings, why they matter, and how they contribute to my claim of Saturday Night Live being a satirical work rather than straight comedic.MethodsFor simplicity sake, I kept the parameters of my research focus narrow, squaring in on the sketches of Saturday Night Live that satire politics. And to be even more specific, the presidential politics of the recent years, from the start of the first Obama administration and on. This being for multiple reasons, one because SNL satires a multitude of topics that wouldn’t be possible to cover without writing entire volumes and two because the show itself has been running for nearly 50 seasons now which again would be very difficult to cover in a small research report. Also, to be sure I navigated the full spectrum, I examined satirical sketches ridiculing both Democrats and Republicans, eight in total to be exact. The sketches covered various topics regarding politics within the past 10 years, some being cold opens to start the show and others being regular sketches within the show. The eight clips were “Bern Your Enthusiasm,” “How a Bill Does Not Become a Law,” “CNN Election Center Cold Open,” “Weekend Update: Pete Davidson’s Trumpdate,” “Voters For Trump Ad,” “Hillary Campaign Ad,” “Donald Trump vs Hillary Clinton Town Hall Debate Cold Open,” and “Sarah Palin and Hillary Address the Nation.” Each of the chosen sketches I watched in their entirety, listing out the elements found in each and every one and lining them up next to one another to find the common satirical and comedic elements that exist in every sketch. Satirical and comedic elements included the dialogue the actors performed, how the actors portrayed the characters, which actors were chosen, the tone of the skit, and the message it was sending. After listing out the foundations of every sketch, it was up to using rhetorical analysis to decide what was simply comedic and what was satirical. To do so, I had to dive deeper and look into the background of the sketches, their exigence. I conducted background research on the subjects being satirized in each of the chosen sketches and gathered information related to each of the subjects. In some cases, it was a person specifically and other times it was a bill being passed or an election in which research needed to be done for both sides considering this is politics and bias exists on many sites and news sources. For each subject, I looked up the dates when it occurred, the response and discussion around the subject, and how the subject was brought up in the sketch. Following this segment of the research, I then returned to the results of my rhetorical analysis to define what was satirical and what was comedic. I based my judgement off of what was listed in the introduction as the accepted definition of satire: something attempting to ridicule a subject using a variety of different approaches from mockery to irony. Each of the elements were sorted into one of the two genres and what was left was a comparison of the satirical components compared to general comedic parts. After the comparison, I listed out what was satirical about the sketches to prove that SNL is going for much more than a laugh, looking to comment on political issues among other issues in society as well as being humorous.ResultsAfter watching the eight sketches, many of the same elements arose in each of them. With their being political bias prevalent in many networks and satires, Saturday Night Live is no exception. In each of the eight sketches, there is some sort of connotation and stance in regards to the subject at hand. Typical and often expected of many networks, there is a prevalent bias towards everything spoken on in regards to politics. The NBC network writers are one of many network writers to speak from a democratic point of view. In each of the skits, there was a heavy under tone of bashing republicans, but also hazing democrats to not dissuade republican viewers from tuning in. This is such the case with the portrayal of Donald Trump on the program. Trump being a widely unpopular figure and eventual president in the eyes of the media, SNL portrays Trump in a negative way, appealing to the majority of viewers at home who disapprove of his profile. Another reoccurring facet of the skits examined was the accurate likenesses created by the cast. All of the cast are actors skilled in improv and comedy as well as acting (self-explanatory) and conveying an accurate image of their assigned character. In each of the skits, an actor was chosen who was similar in likeness to the person they were assigned to impersonate. One example of this was Jay Pharaoh being chosen to impersonate former President Barrack Obama in skits because of his stature, skin color, hair, facial structure, and ability to match Obama’s vocal tone. The most important and frequent element I noted was the inclusion of all of the satirical devices I listed in the introduction. Included within the skits but not limited to just the ones listed in the intro were mockery, irony, exaggeration, and sarcasm. For example, by examining just one clip, “How a Bill Does Not Become a Law,” you can see that the skits contain all four elements, with part performing each of the satirical devices. The skit is a parody of the Schoolhouse Rock song “How a Bill Becomes a Law.” Within the skit, the actors employ mockery when mocking America’s reaction to president Obama’s executive order to grant legal status to 5 million undocumented immigrants during his presidency. This of course overrides the set order that congress is supposed to perform in, providing a touch of irony as it overrides the original song that states that laws get passed by becoming bills and going through congress to be voted on before becoming approved by the president. Exaggeration and sarcasm occur when the bill (Bobby Moynihan) reads itself and exclaims “Whoa! I didn’t have time to read myself. Well go big or go home huh?”DiscussionSo, why does it matter that Saturday Night Live fits into the satirical genre rather than just straightforward comedy? In order to understand why we need to take a brief step back and broaden the perspective. After all, the show doesn’t exist in a vacuum as it comments on society around it. The exposure of the show is on a massive scale with millions tuning in every weekend to watch the sketch comedy and enjoy more than just a laugh, but see a lighthearted take on issues occurring in the world. The show’s creator Lorne Michaels is quoted as saying “it got a laugh, but did it get the right laugh?” His quote is the epitome of what the show aims for. It aims to be comedic but to also satirize issues, possibly in the hopes of creating change much like the Canterbury Tales or Mark Twain’s work. Both examples changed society’s perception on the issues spoken upon and satirized in their work, leading to progress in the form of solutions to the issues called into question. Zooming back in to SNL and the political scope of things I have chosen to focus on, this background knowledge on what predecessors in the craft have done provides a bit of insight on the tops being discussed in the sketches analyzed. Each of which comments of a certain subject and the conversation going on around it in a nonchalant attempt to spur debate over the issue.Continuing off of this, you can look at the “How a Bill Does Not Become a Law” sketch from an entirely different perspective. A widely debated happening at the time of its airing was the execution of then-President Barrack Obama’s executive order allow the entrance of millions of undocumented immigrants into the country as citizens. Political debate was quite heated, as always, around the subject with America becoming increasingly polarized in the political realm every day. At one point, congress shut down and aimed to take the president to court over the constitutionality of his executive order which overrode the process set in pen and paper by the founding fathers of the nation in our constitution. This is mentioned in the skit as the bill (Keenan Thompson) continually gets tossed aside by President Obama (Jay Pharaoh) and the bill continues to rise up, expressing the opposition’s view of the order and the concerns within our populous. While the airing of the skit did not directly lead to any changes in the political landscape, the order which had granted temporary status to millions of undocumented immigrants was later brought to attention by the Trump administration upon taking office, as the saga regarding the touchy issue still unfolds today. This skit in a way raised awareness of the whole scope of the situation while providing comedic relief to avoid a simple dissertation regarding the political issue.In another case of the show’s effect as evidence of its importance in the satirical landscape, the sketch “Hillary Campaign Ad” satirizes the 2016 Clinton campaign staff and her platform in reference to her main opposition for the Democratic nomination, Bernie Sanders. Bernie’s main driving force of support was the youth vote as many voters in their teens, early twenties, and late twenties rallied behind the Sanders campaign due to his stance on economic issues such as health care, higher education, and welfare. Sanders desired to instill some form of free or extremely affordable health care much like many other successful countries have abroad. In addition, he aimed to create a means of providing free education to the public much like the nations in Europe whose school systems are vastly superior to American schools in the eyes of much of the world. As a result, Sanders was believed by many to be the front-runner for the Democratic party’s nomination come convention time. This led the Clinton campaign to adopt much of the ideas and policies Sanders was making oh so popular at the time. In an example of mockery during the heat of the race for the nomination, SNL created a feaux campaign advertisement mocking Hillary’s shift in platform mimicking Sanders. In the sketch, Clinton (Kate McKinnon) is shown speaking to voters and the camera much like a typical campaign ad. However, in each frame Clinton’s image appears more and more like Sanders, becoming older, shorter, and the face changing as well to mock her change in image in the public eye. This of course warranted “the right laugh” as it made fun of campaign ads and the Clinton campaigns shift in hopes of recovering and winning the nomination. The “ad” did not have any effect on the outcome of the nomination despite its popularity, with Clinton’s shift in policy paying off and winning the nomination on the Democratic ticket for the presidency.The same can be said about the other six sketches which were examined, as the successful satirizing of the subjects that were discussed each time led to the audience of the airing of the skits and ensuing streaming online receiving a fresh take on the political happenings, free of bias and polarization unlike the news networks which were also reviewing the events. Each mocked, exaggerated, etc. all of the events and allowed the audiences to get the “right laugh” when viewing the sketches and shape their own opinions on the issues rather than seemingly receiving mainstream opinions from news networks. SNL provides an escape from bias and allows its viewers to criticize issues along with the writers and producers of the show.The findings of the results previously listed in their self-titled section allow the reader of this report to see this show and related ones from a perspective perhaps previously unseen. Prior to my rhetorical analysis of the sketches from the show, I had only scratched the surface of what was supposed to be the true takeaway from the show. As stated before, comedy and satire and intertwined and therefore it is quite easy for viewers of the show to only see the comedic appeal of its airings and not what lies beneath in the form of political satire. Once reading this and seeing the aspects which make the show satirical and more than just a comedy, it allows viewers to experience the same sort of enlightenment I experienced in terms of seeing the show for what it truly is rather than just laughing at the jokes laying on the surface. Although this research too only scratches the surface of the possibilities of diving into the genius rhetoric of the sketches within the show, it provides insight on how to read into the words and jokes being hurled at you like a pitch in baseball. One too could look into future episodes and attempt to find the same satirical elements which I uncovered in my analysis, and read into the rhetoric like I did.The research of this subject however could be vastly expanded upon in several different directions as of course, what was examined is only a fragment of one of the longest tenured shows in television history. One could expand the time period which is being examined, looking into the political satires regarding Vietnam, the Reagan administration, the Bush administration and much more along the political timeline which this show spans. One could also branch into other subjects being satirized such as athletes and sporting events like the super bowl or pop culture regarding movie stars and music artists. In addition, one could examine other related shows mentioning politics such as The Simpsons, The Colbert Report, and The Daily Show, all of which provide satirical insights on politics and pop culture much like SNL. I hope one day someone does take the rewarding opportunity to expand upon the avenue which I have traveled down, and builds upon this research.Annotated BibliographyBaumgartner, Jody C, and Brad Lockerbie. “Maybe It Is More Than a Joke: Satire, Mobilization, and Political Participation*.” The Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering, Southwestern Social Science Association, 5 Mar. 2018, onlinelibrary.doi/full/10.1111/ssqu.12501Bessant, Judith. “New Politics and Satire: The Euro Financial Crisis and the One-Finger Salute.” Taylor and Francis Online, Journal of Information, Communication & Society, 7 Jul 2016, doi/10.1080/1369118X.2016.1206138Mazzei, M. “Satire.." Eds.b., Salem Press Encyclopedia of Literature, 2018 , Saturday Night. “Bern Your Enthusiasm - SNL.” YouTube, NBC, 7 Feb. 2016, watch?v=nn4tP7ogWIA&list=WL&index=10&t=190s.Live, Saturday Night. “CNN Election Center Cold Open - SNL.” YouTube, NBC, 6 Mar. 2016, watch?v=Y1hEyiE2q-w&list=WL&index=6&t=104s.Live, Saturday Night. “Donald Trump vs. Hillary Clinton Town Hall Debate Cold Open - SNL.” YouTube, NBC, 16 Oct. 2016, watch?v=qVMW_1aZXRk&list=WL&index=13&t=32s.Live, Saturday Night. “Hillary Campaign Ad - SNL.” YouTube, NBC, 13 Mar. 2016, watch?v=O3iBb1gvehI&list=WL&index=9&t=0s.Live, Saturday Night. “How a Bill Does Not Become a Law - SNL.” YouTube, NBC, 23 Nov. 2014, watch?v=JUDSeb2zHQ0&list=WL&index=14&t=0s.Live, Saturday Night. “Sarah Palin and Hillary Address the Nation - SNL.” YouTube, NBC, 23 Sept. 2013, watch?v=vSOLz1YBFG0&list=WL&index=11&t=88s.Live, Saturday Night. “Voters For Trump Ad - SNL.” YouTube, NBC, 6 Mar. 2016, watch?v=Qg0pO9VG1J8&list=WL&index=12&t=0s.Live, Saturday Night. “Weekend Update: Pete Davidson's Trumpdate - SNL.” YouTube, NBC, 4 Oct. 2015, watch?v=05rTAZ7SD0c&list=WL&index=7&t=0s.Appendix A ................
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