Department of English and American Studies English Language And
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Masaryk University Faculty of Arts Department of English and American Studies English Language and Literature Jan Zborovský Satire in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld Series Bachelor’s Diploma Thesis Supervisor: prof. Mgr. Milada Franková, CSc., M.A. 2016 I declare that I have worked on this thesis independently, using only the primary and secondary sources listed in the bibliography. …………………………………………….. Author’s signature “I'll be more enthusiastic about encouraging thinking outside the box when there's evidence of any thinking going on inside it.” — Terry Pratchett Table of Consents 1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 5 2. What is Satire? ........................................................................................................... 6 3. Character Analysis ..................................................................................................... 8 3.1 Captain Carrot Ironfoundersson .............................................................................. 8 3.2 Lord Havelock Vetinari ......................................................................................... 11 3.3 Commander Samuel Vimes ................................................................................... 15 4. Racism ..................................................................................................................... 20 5. Police and Minorities ............................................................................................... 26 6. Affirmative Action .................................................................................................. 30 7. Jingoism ................................................................................................................... 35 8. Conclusion ............................................................................................................... 42 Bibliography ................................................................................................................... 45 Summary ......................................................................................................................... 47 Résumé ............................................................................................................................ 48 1. Introduction British author Terry Pratchett has gained worldwide acclaim for his fiction. However, due to his reputation as a fantasy author, he is often neglected in his position as a satirist. This thesis focuses on examining some of the satire and how it is used to convey the critical commentary on its targets. The satire created in his Discworld novels is timeless, oddly relevant and often comical. Discworld is the world that serves as the setting for Pratchett's Discworld series novels. The world itself is built on characteristics taken from real world eras and locations. It is also claimed to be ruled by magic, but the magic that appears on Discworld is logical in its existence: "The reason it is fantasy is that it is logical about the wrong things, about those parts of human experience where, by tactic agreement, we don't use logic because it doesn't work properly" ("Imaginary Worlds" 160). Discworld is created in such a way to resemble the real world, thus making it the ideal platform for satire even if it is hidden among fantasy. By deciding to connect his satire with fantasy genre Pratchett created for himself the ideal platform to reflect our world and plant his satire in it. The intention of this thesis is to pick some examples of satire from the Discworld series and to examine them in connections to both general views on the problematic and in connection to the views of Terry Pratchett. The main focus will be on the City Watch and other city themed novels mainly on the novels: Man at Arms (1993), Feet of Clay (1996), Jingo (1997), Going Postal (2004) and Thud (2005), thus making the main concerns of the satire be social interactions and politics. The thesis looks at the satire through the viewpoint of Discworld characters and population. The thesis is set up in several chapters: one concerning the theoretical information about satire and how it is used by Terry Pratchett on the base level. Other chapters are concerned with examining 5 some of the main characters that are both vessel for satire and also the ones offering the views on other matters. The rest of the chapters are concerned with the themes of racism and its connections to more focused themes, from affirmative action to its connections with extreme forms of nationalism. Finally, the thesis seeks to answer the questions of whether the satire in the series reflects Terry Pratchett’s approach to the themes or is just created by him to point out the silliness and flaws in encompassed in the themes and human nature in general. 2. What is Satire? To allow bigger insight into the topic satire needs to be introduced even if only in its complete basics. Satire, as defined by Merriam-Webster online dictionary is “a way of using humour to show that someone or something is foolish, weak, bad, etc.: humour that shows the weaknesses or bad qualities of a person, government, society, etc.” (“Satire”). Satire is humorous realistic, insightful and absurd at the same time. The genre traces its origin over 2400 years back to the ancient Greece where it first appeared as drama. Soon after the creation of satire in Greece, the Romans restructured it according to their own rules, creating a model for writing satire. Satire is viewed as a lesser genre due to its concerns with the ordinary foolishness of everyday life. Satire is both loved and hated for its attack on the human nature, but is also seen as common due to its focus on mundane as if it was something unusual. One of the bases for satirical writing is the almost arrogance of author because they assume a position of moral superiority over their targets. Satire is a method of recording reality in a twisted way to make the flaws more apparent. The danger of satire lies in the fact that if the subject is challenged and parodied in a convincing way it can be taken seriously and cause issues with the readers. The general 6 goal of satire is to shock through the usage of imagery and language and humour. The essential element of humour in satire is what separates it from the more serious genres. As such satire can be described as a weapon against stupidity and absurdity. In his pursuit of satire Terry Pratchett creates a neutral setting for his novels to criticise and parody nearly any subject possible. Although by picking fantasy setting he hinders himself as fantasy setting is often seen as a lesser platform and thus, it outshines the critique produced in such works. In the case of Pratchett, his examining of surprisingly many topics from benefits of dictatorship to racial issues his commentary offers thoughtful commentary on the human condition and institutional policy. As a profound satirist, Pratchett writes his novels to comment on many issues and ideas. Even the world on which his novels are based is a parody of an ancient belief. One that the world is flat and that it rides on the back of a turtle through space. This ancient belief was founded in places where people and turtles lived together and the four elephants are based on the Indo-European variation of the said myth. Within this world, Pratchett creates imitations of political and social organisations and reflects the way people usually thinks about problems. Characters created in his stories often possess characteristics of real figures and are used for satirist purposes while also fitting into the story. These characters are evolved as the times go on through the narration thus, allowing themselves to remain topical even if the sphere they were used to comment on changed. The satire and real world imagery are used by Pratchett to create compelling stories and not to hinder the contents of the novel. Pratchett combines fantasy and satire in a way that enables him to be both creative and politically charged within an alternate reality, giving him total freedom and adaptability in his satire. He creates a lasting form of satire that is more of a ridicule than 7 an actual attack on the values. His satire serves as both reflections on current events and portrayal of human nature and reactions. 3. Character Analysis This thesis discusses the usage of satire through some of the major characters appearing in the Discworld series. The characters are often both used as a satire themselves and also as vessels for satirical commentary on the issues they face. The thesis looks at three of the main characters that are often appearing throughout the series. These characters take main roles in the city themed novels from the series but they also sometimes appear in minor roles throughout the rest of the series, they appear both in just mentions or actually contributing to the story in some way. The three characters this thesis will discuss are ruler of the city Lord Havelock Vetinari, Commander of the City Watch Samuel Vimes and rightful king of Ankh-Morpork and watch Captain Carrot Ironfoundersson. It will explore their origin and basic characteristics they hold and will also discuss their contributions on the discussed topics. 3.1 Captain Carrot Ironfoundersson The character of Captain Carrot servers as a lens for the interactions on themes of leadership and monarchy. He is set up as an heir to the throne but at the same time lacks the ambition