The Chasers Use Of Satire

Satire has allowed composers to highlight and expose people’s inadequacies as well as explore how power can corrupt in the context of political issues. Composers are able to teach society about various issues through satirical techniques such as irony and ridicule. This is evidenced through George Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’, The Chasers’ “Yes We Canberra!” and the political cartoons of Bill Leak. The three different mediums seek to educate us on the Russian revolution and Australian politics. All three composers have been able to teach us through the use of satire in their different text types.

Through the use of allegory in Orwell’s ‘Animal Farm’, he is able to effectively teach us that absolute power leads to absolute corruption. Orwell uses

the character of Napoleon to represent the Russian communist leader Joseph Stalin. The changing behavioral patterns of Napoleon can be matched to those of Stalin, which teaches us about the ability of power to corrupt. The character of Napoleon is presented as intelligent yet ultimately greedy and is described as “not much of a talker, but [had] a reputation for getting his own way”. When Napoleon assumes power, he says that his maxim is “I will work harder”. This maxim, which Napoleon adapts, is a piece of propaganda spread by Squealer in an effort to motivate the other animals to work harder as well as gain supporters for Napoleon, as if he can control the working class he gains more power.

Furthermore, the greed of the pigs is shown in the novel as they give themselves extra rations.

Squealer defends the actions of the pigs by saying “You do not imagine, I hope, that we pigs are doing this in a spirit of selfishness and privilege? … It is for your sake that we drink the milk and eat those apples”. A rhetorical question is used to belittle the other farm animals as the pigs have superior intelligence to the rest of the animals. He also justifies the actions of the pigs by saying that it is for the benefit of the others and that most of the pigs “…actually dislike milk and apples”. It is through these examples of satire in relation to greed and corruption, Orwell is able to teach us about how power can corrupt, while reflecting on a society built on a communist

ideal.

Similarly, the Chaser team seeks to educate their audience through the use of satire.

They use humor and irony to mock the various political figures such as Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott during the 2010 political election. The use of statistics, such as the preferred leader ‘worm’ is used to mock the leaders as one of the statistics shows that people prefer Adam from Masterchef over Julia Gillard for Prime Minister. Additionally, the Chaser team is able belittle the leadership qualities of Julia Gillard. The use of fake advertisements, such as the “Julia Gillard GPS”, are used to mock the political campaigns. The Julia Gillard GPS is used to highlight the fact that her political tagline of “Move forward” is ineffective. The ad is also used to mock her policies as the car is instructed to run over a group of immigrants and a gay couple, reinforcing the idea that her policies are outdated. Even though satire is used by the Chaser team is to give a humorous effect, it is still able to teach us about the inadequacies in modern day

politics.

Orwell also employs the use of irony in his novel to teach his audience about how corruption can produce worse circumstances for the working class, who have no power in the decision being made. The notion of a rebellion, first raised by Old Major, was originally a pure and fair goal, but as the pigs gain more power and control under the leadership of Napoleon, they become corrupted and eventually created worse conditions for the animals living on Animal Farm. The farm animals, by the conclusion of the ‘fairy story’, are gathered outside of the house and they see that the pigs are playing cards with the men and as “[they] looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which”. The repetition of the animals trying to distinguish man from pig is used to illustrate the confusion of the animals, as they cannot tell the difference between their current oppressors and their previous oppressors. Orwell uses the assimilation of the pigs into human culture to demonstrate how corruption can alter an individuals morals and ideals.

Likewise, Bill Leak’s political cartoon entitled “Brown Nosing” is used to expose how Green’s Senator Bob Brown is controlling Julia Gillard. The title itself suggests that Julia Gillard is totally obedient to Bob Brown and that he has complete control over her. Through the depiction of Gillard as a puppet, and the paint cans in the background of the image shows that Bob Brown created Julia Gillard. Through Bob Brown wielding an axe, it is evident that he has more power over her and he punishes her by taking a limb when she tries to refuse to pass the carbon tax. Leak also uses the allusion of Pinocchio’s growing nose to depict Gillard as a liar, as her nose grows every time she says “there will be no carbon tax”. Through portraying Gillard as the puppet and Brown as the puppeteer, Leak is able to belittle the power of Gillard as she is depicted as being controlled by Brown on strings. Leak, through his political cartoon, tries to convey a message that the influence and power of Julia Gillard is being undermined by other members of the Labor and Greens party, such as Bob Brown.

Through the use of satire, various composers of different mediums, such as George Orwell, the Chaser team and Bill Leak, are able to teach us about the inadequacies of our leaders and how “absolute power corrupts absolutely” (Lord John Acton). The composers are able to teach us from alternative viewpoints through the use of satirical techniques such as irony and humor. Moreover, all three texts have sought to educate society about current and past societal issues and satire has given each composer a voice in which they can convey their message.