Satire is the use of wit to criticize behavior. At first glance, this technique seems humorous, but its main purpose is to inform the audience. Authors typically use satire as a tool to draw attention to both specific and broader societal issues. It effectively reveals these issues to the public. In the novel Slaughterhouse Five, by Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Vonnegut uses satire in many situations to expose the brutal truth and horrors of war. Vonnegut emphasizes the fact that death and war are inevitable. His goal throughout this novel is to make his readers succeed in accepting life on its own terms and recognizing the fact that the inevitable cannot be changed. The Modest Proposal was written by Jonathan Swift in 1729 and is a great example of how satire can reveal societal issues with a comedic twist. This famous pamphlet suggests that poor Irish people could alleviate their economic hardship by selling their children as food for the upper classes. "I admit that this food is perhaps a little expensive, and therefore very suitable for the owners, who, as they have already devoured most of the ...