Rhetoric & FiguresIntermediate
Parody
Imitation that exposes, mocks, or refunctions a recognizable style or form.
Principle
Parody depends on the reader hearing the original through the imitation.
Takeaways
- It can mock, homage, critique, or renew its source.
- The target must be recognisable enough to be activated.
- Parody without transformation is only mimicry.
Overview
Parody imitates the features of a text, genre, style, or discourse in order to create critical or comic distance. It is intertextual by design.
Examples
- A mock-epic style is applied to a petty household dispute.
- A detective formula is exaggerated until its assumptions become comic.