Satire as the Comic Public Sphere (Paperback)

James E. Caron

ISBN 10: 0271090197 / ISBN 13: 9780271090191

Published by Pennsylvania State University Press, University Park, 2024

About this Item

Paperback. Stephen Colbert, Samantha Bee, John Oliver, and Jimmy Kimmelthese comedians are household names whose satirical takes on politics, the news, and current events receive some of the highest ratings on television. In this book, James E. Caron examines these and other satirists through the lenses of humor studies, cultural theory, and rhetorical and social philosophy, arriving at a new definition of the comic art form. Tracing the history of modern satire from its roots in the Enlightenment values of rational debate, evidence, facts, accountability, and transparency, Caron identifies a new genre: truthiness satire. He shows how satirists such as Colbert, Bee, Oliver, and Kimmelalong with writers like Charles Pierce and Jack Shaferrely on shared values and on the postmodern aesthetics of irony and affect to foster engagement within the comic public sphere that satire creates. Using case studies of bits, parodies, and routines, Caron reveals a remarkable process: when evidence-based news reporting collides with a discursive space asserting alternative facts, the satiric laughter that erupts can move the audience toward reflection and possibly even action as the body politic in the public sphere.With rigor, humor, and insight, Caron shows that truthiness satire pushes back against fake news and biased reporting and that the satirist today is at heart a citizen, albeit a seemingly silly one. This book will appeal to anyone interested in and concerned about public discourse in the current era, especially researchers in media studies, communication studies, political science, and literary and cultural studies. Examines the work of satirists through the lenses of humor studies, cultural theory, and rhetorical and social philosophy, arriving at a new definition of the comic art form. Shipping may be from our Sydney, NSW warehouse or from our UK or US warehouse, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9780271090191

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Satire as the Comic Public Sphere (Paperback)
• Publisher: Pennsylvania State University Press, University Park
• Publication Date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0271090197
• ISBN 13: 9780271090191
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

Stephen Colbert, Samantha Bee, John Oliver, and Jimmy Kimmel―these comedians are household names whose satirical takes on politics, the news, and current events receive some of the highest ratings on television. In this book, James E. Caron examines these and other satirists through the lenses of humor studies, cultural theory, and rhetorical and social philosophy, arriving at a new definition of the comic art form.

Tracing the history of modern satire from its roots in the Enlightenment values of rational debate, evidence, facts, accountability, and transparency, Caron identifies a new genre: “truthiness satire.” He shows how satirists such as Colbert, Bee, Oliver, and Kimmel―along with writers like Charles Pierce and Jack Shafer―rely on shared values and on the postmodern aesthetics of irony and affect to foster engagement within the comic public sphere that satire creates. Using case studies of bits, parodies, and routines, Caron reveals a remarkable process: when evidence-based news reporting collides with a discursive space asserting alternative facts, the satiric laughter that erupts can move the audience toward reflection and possibly even action as the body politic in the public sphere.

With rigor, humor, and insight, Caron shows that truthiness satire pushes back against fake news and biased reporting and that the satirist today is at heart a citizen, albeit a seemingly silly one. This book will appeal to anyone interested in and concerned about public discourse in the current era, especially researchers in media studies, communication studies, political science, and literary and cultural studies.

About the Author

James E. Caron is Professor Emeritus of English at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa. He is the author of Mark Twain, Unsanctified Newspaper Reporter and coeditor of Refocusing Chaplin: A Screen Icon Through Critical Lenses and Sut Lovingood’s Nat’ral Born Yarnspinner: Essays on George Washington Harris.