Social commentary is the act of using rhetorical means to provide commentary on issues in a society. This is often done with the idea of implementing or promoting change by informing the general populace about a given problem and appealing to people's sense of justice. Social commentary can be practiced through all forms of communication, from printed form, to conversations to computerized communication.
Two examples of strong and bitter social commentary are the writings of Jonathan Swift and Martin Luther. Swift exposed and decried the appalling poverty in Ireland at the time, which was viewed as the fault of the British government. Luther initiated the Protestant Reformation against practices of the Catholic Church. Examples of social commentators from the are Charles Dickens and Will Rogers.
Read more about Social Commentary: Forms of Social Commentary, Monologists, Discussion Shows, Talk Shows (call-in), Famous Social Commentators
Famous quotes containing the words social and/or commentary:
“Today’s city is the most vulnerable social structure ever conceived by man.”
—Martin Oppenheimer (b. 1930)
“Lonely people keep up a ceaseless flow of commentary on themselves.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)