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Classifications by topics

Types of satire can also be classified according to the topics it deals with. From the earliest times, at least since the plays of Aristophanes, the primary topics of literary satire have been politics, religion and sex. This is partly because these are the most pressing problems that affect anybody living in a society, and partly because these topics are usually taboo. Among these, politics in the broader sense is considered the pre-eminent topic of satire. Satire which targets the clergy is a type of political satire, while religious satire is that which targets religious beliefs. Satire on sex may overlap with blue comedy, off-color humor and dick jokes.

Scatology has a long literary association with satire, as it is a classical mode of the grotesque, the grotesque body and the satiric grotesque. Shit plays a fundamental role in satire because it symbolizes death, the turd being "the ultimate dead object". The satirical comparison of individuals or institutions with human excrement, exposes their "inherent inertness, corruption and dead-likeness". The ritual clowns of clown societies, like among the Pueblo Indians, have ceremonies with filth-eating. In other cultures, sin-eating is an apotropaic rite in which the sin-eater (also called filth-eater), by ingesting the food provided, takes "upon himself the sins of the departed". Satire about death overlaps with black humor and gallows humor.

Another classification by topics is the distinction between political satire, religious satire and satire of manners. Political satire is sometimes called topical satire, satire of manners is sometimes called satire of everyday life, and religious satire is sometimes called philosophical satire. Comedy of manners, sometimes also called satire of manners, criticizes mode of life of common people; political satire aims at behavior, manners of politicians, and vices of political systems. Historically, comedy of manners, which first appeared in British theater in 1620, has uncritically accepted the social code of the upper classes. Comedy in general accepts the rules of the social game, while satire subverts them.

Another analysis of satire is the spectrum of his possible tones: wit, ridicule, irony, sarcasm, cynicism, the sardonic and invective.

The type of humour that deals with creating laughter at the expense of the person telling the joke is called reflexive humour. Reflexive humour can take place at dual levels of directing humour at self or at the larger community the self identifies with. The audience's understanding of the context of reflexive humour is important for its receptivity and success. Satire is found not only in written literary forms. In preliterate cultures it manifests itself in ritual and folk forms, as well as in trickster tales and oral poetry.

It appears also in graphic arts, music, sculpture, dance, cartoon strips, and graffiti. Examples are Dada sculptures, Pop Art works, music of Gilbert and Sullivan and Erik Satie, punk and rock music. In modern media culture, stand-up comedy is an enclave in which satire can be introduced into mass media, challenging mainstream discourse. Comedy roasts, mock festivals, and stand-up comedians in nightclubs and concerts are the modern forms of ancient satiric rituals.