Satirical Poems

“Wit with a purpose—irony, parody, and pointed critique in verse.”

TitleAuthorType of Poem
The Lover In HellStephen Vincent BenetSatirical
The Mad Tory And The CometThomas MooreSatirical
The Man Who Could WriteRudyard KiplingSatirical
The Masque Of PlentyRudyard KiplingSatirical
The Meeting Of The DryadsOliver Wendell HolmesSatirical
The MillenniumThomas MooreSatirical
The Moral BullyOliver Wendell HolmesSatirical
The NaulahkaRudyard KiplingSatirical
The New Costume Of The MinistersThomas MooreSatirical
The Numbering Of The ClergyThomas MooreSatirical

Understanding Satirical Poetry

Satirical poems use wit, irony, exaggeration, and ridicule to expose folly—personal, social, or political. The aim isn’t just laughter: it’s critique that nudges readers toward insight or change.

Common characteristics of satirical poetry:

  • Targeted Critique: Focuses on specific behaviors, institutions, or ideas—often timely, sometimes timeless.
  • Tools of Irony: Uses sarcasm, parody, understatement, and hyperbole to sharpen the point.
  • Voice & Persona: Speakers may be unreliable or exaggerated to reveal contradictions and hypocrisy.
  • Form Flexibility: Appears in couplets, tercets, quatrains, blank verse, or free verse—music serves the mockery.
  • Moral Pressure: Beneath the humor lies ethical pressure—satire seeks reform, not merely amusement.
  • Public & Personal: Can lampoon public figures and trends or needle private vanities and everyday pretenses.

The best satire balances bite with craft: memorable lines that entertain while revealing the gap between how things are and how they ought to be.