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What is the history of Greek satire?
See: www.nottheonion.com/history.php See: www.nottheonion.com/history.php
What type of plays made fun of Greek legends?
Satire were plays that made fun of Greek legends.
Who wrote Greek comedy?
The only ancient Greek comedian whose works survive is Aristophanes; eleven of his 40 or so plays remain. He wrote plays poking fun at contemporary life and famous figures at the time. His play "The Clouds" made fun of Socrates, and the satire was so vicious that Plato claimed the play caused Socrates to be executed. Much of Aristophanes' humor is crude, even disgusting, but much of it is still funny today; for example, in "The Birds", he lampoons lawyers and the tendency of ancient Athenians to sue over even the smallest insult.
Where does name shamwickshire come from?
According to Duncan Fielder in his book "A History of Bideford" (Phillimore & Co., 1985) p83, the first 'Shamwickshire Election' took place at Garrat Village near Wandsworth, a place famous during the eighteenth century for its carnival of political satire. Well over a century later, throughout the 1920s, the Torridge-side seafaring and mining town of East the Water in Devon held similar festivities mocking the authorities, where a Mayor and Mayoress (both men) were elected. Shipwrights rang handbells and set off firecrackers as the crowds moved across Longbridge to Bideford town, rolling blazing tar barrels, and general drunkenness ensued. Perhaps unsurprisingly, by the depression years of the 1930s "the rowdiness of the 'Shamwickshire' celebrations gave offence to the dignity of the [Bideford] town council, and the ceremony was suppressed." The election of a Mayor of Shamwickshire does however still take place in East the Water.
