Satire

The satire unit was the final topic we covered for the year in AP Language. Following the AP exam, we were given an option to read either Faulkner's As I Lay Dying or a work by Steinbeck. The class chose As I Lay Dying. The unit was conducted with a lot of independent reading- usually around 40-50 pages for every couple of days with more for weekends. The book did not have many writing assignments, but a large focus was placed on in class discussions.

Brief Sample Analysis:
Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift

Gulliver's Travels is a satirical look at the goverments of Swift's time. It is written from the point of view of a man named Gulliver as he encounteres different worlds (he was a giant in one and the size of an ant in another) throughout his journeys.
The novel begins with a publisher's note which I skipped over the first time not realizing it was part of the book. It is infact a note Swift included from the perspective of Gulliver's friend introducing the simple style that Swift chose to write in and establishing credibility for Gullver which will be needed to believe his travels.
The simple style introduced in that section is greatly needed to keep the adventures understandable and allow the correlation between the real world and Swift's satirical world to shine through. Much of the staire is hard to really catch without either knowledge of Swift's time and government or foot notes, as I have in my book. However Swift makes his story entertaining on the superficial level so even those whod on't pick up on the satirical elements can enjoy it, all though they can't appreciate it as much.