Mini Essay on D.W. Harding.

In "Regulated Hatred" D.W. Harding writes on author Jane Austen and her satirical technique in Pride and Prejudice. In his first point, Harding claims that her work has "non of the underlying didactic intention ordinarily attributed to the satirist". In other words, her book technically lacks the defining characteristics of satire. On this point I would have to disagree with Harding. I believe that Pride and Prejudice is a satirical masterpiece. It makes people laugh at representations of themselves without even knowing it. Furthermore, Harding also claims that Austen over exaggerates every character in her book in order to make all her readers and herself laugh at them. Austen represents people she hates as characters in her book. If she had not exaggerated them, she would not have been able to amuse herself.