Tapping Parody for the Sake of Satire

Abstract

After having taken a bird’s-eye view of parody as defined over the years by theorists thereof, and discussing the pros and cons of the “parody vs satire” stance, the present essay argues with D. Van Ghent (1953) and R. Chambers (2010) that parody can best be viewed as a technique. While Section 3 features “stiob” (Yurchak, 2006) as the prototype of ‘politically-correct’ parody, Section 4 takes theory out into the field by anatomizing several specimens of ‘politically-germane’ parody.

Cuvinte-cheie: parodie, satiră, stiob (de tip), corect politic / relevant / incorect, transcontextualizare

REZUMAT

După ce abordăm parodia dintr-o perspectivă generală, aşa cum a fost definită de-a lungul anilor de către teoreticienii acesteia, şi discutăm avantajele şi dezavantajele opoziţiei „parodie versus satiră”, în prezentul eseu argumentăm, bazându-ne pe concepţiile lui D. Van Ghent (1953) şi R. Chambers (2010), că parodia este, mai întâi de toate, o tehnică. În timp ce Secţiunea 3 a lucrării prezintă „stiob”-ul (Yurchak, 2006) ca prototip al parodiei „corecte din punct de vedere politic”, Secţiunea 4 dezvoltă teoria dată prin analiza mai multor exemple de parodie „relevantă din punct de vedere politic”.

LANGUAGES OF PUBLICATION

English (sometimes Romanian) (main text); English, German (corpus)

UDC: 82-225.09 

REFERENCES

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Received: September 10, 2015 | Reviewed: September 25, 2015 | Accepted for publication: September 30, 2015

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