Some might call this a bold claim, but I think Jonathan Swift might very well be the greatest satirist of all time. While Stephen Colbert and John Stewart might come close with their brilliant political commentaries, they both lack the subtlety and pseudo seriousness of Swift’s social satires. Plus, Swift’s writing embodies a certain eloquence that the crass left-wingers do their best to avoid. With his novel Gulliver’s Travels, Swift is able to critique the English government and European colonialism in what could just as easily be a children’s story as a social commentary. The same cannot be said for Colbert or Stewart, whose rants are thinly veiled critiques of 21^st century politics and society best saved for a 14A audience (for whatever that’s worth).

This makes me wonder; is the art of satire lost to us in the modern day? In an era where people are constantly looking for instant gratification, I’m not sure that the average person is willing to put in the thought necessary to truly appreciate a well-disguised social or political commentary. Hollywood movies are dominated by massive explosions and scantily clad women, while films that do try to critique American politics and culture do so quite bluntly. In terms of books, well… does anyone even read books anymore? I got my younger sister a box set of The Hunger Games for her birthday in August; when I last visited home the plastic wrap still hadn’t been removed, despite the fact that she loved the movies. If anyone is going to be able to revive the art of satire, I strongly believe that it’s going to have to come from audio/video type media. To those who are brave enough to try I say good luck, not with creating clever satire but with getting funding for your project!