ABSTRACT
Satire, 'the use of ridicule, sarcasm etc. to expose, attack, or deride vices, and follies', has its origin in a state of mind which is critical and aggressive, usually one of irritation at the latest examples of human absurdity, inefficiency. Examples of every conceivable form are found, from broad lampoon and crude invective to subtle innuendo and satire based on man's stupidity, and his lack of a sense of proportion. The simplest example of the first type is the Eskimo song of derision. Just as purpose of love-lyric is to win the beloved, so purpose of primitive satire is to get better of the enemy; and primitives try to achieve these ends, less by invoking magical sanctions than by normal literary means, by graphic style and telling content. That kind of primitive satire connected both with the curse and with the personal lampoon, is one of the origins of modern political and moral satire, which calls for repentance and reform.
