Pasquil
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A pasquinade or pasquil is a form of
satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming ...
, usually an anonymous brief
lampoon Lampoon may refer to: *Parody *Amphol Lampoon (born 1963), Thai actor and singer *''The Harvard Lampoon'', a noted humor magazine ** ''National Lampoon'' (magazine), a defunct offshoot of ''Harvard Lampoon'' ***National Lampoon, Incorporated, a 20 ...
in verse or prose, and can also be seen as a form of literary
caricature A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, a ...
. The genre became popular in early modern Europe, in the 16th century, though the term had been used at least as early as the 4th century, as seen in City of God by Augustine of Hippo. Pasquinades can take a number of literary forms, including song,
epigram An epigram is a brief, interesting, memorable, and sometimes surprising or satirical statement. The word is derived from the Greek "inscription" from "to write on, to inscribe", and the literary device has been employed for over two mille ...
, and
satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming ...
. Compared with other kinds of satire, the pasquinade tends to be less didactic and more aggressive, and is more often critical of specific persons or groups. The name "pasquinade" comes from ''
Pasquino Pasquino or Pasquin (Latin: ''Pasquillus'') is the name used by Romans since the early modern period to describe a battered Hellenistic-style statue perhaps dating to the third century BC, which was unearthed in the Parione district of Rome ...
'', the nickname of a
Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...
statue, the remains of a type now known as a ''
Pasquino Group ''The Pasquino Group'' (also known as ''Menelaus Carrying the Body of Patroclus'' or ''Ajax Carrying the Body of Achilles'') is a group of marble sculptures that copy a Hellenistic bronze original, dating to ca. 200–150 BCE. At least fifteen Ro ...
'', found in the
River Tiber The Tiber ( ; it, Tevere ; la, Tiberis) is the third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the Riv ...
in
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
in 1501 – the first of a number of "
talking statues of Rome The talking statues of Rome ( it, statue parlanti di Roma) or the Congregation of Wits () provided an outlet for a form of anonymous political expression in Rome. Criticisms in the form of poems or witticisms were posted on well-known statues in ...
" which have been used since the 16th century by locals to post anonymous political commentary. The verse pasquinade has a classical source in the satirical
epigram An epigram is a brief, interesting, memorable, and sometimes surprising or satirical statement. The word is derived from the Greek "inscription" from "to write on, to inscribe", and the literary device has been employed for over two mille ...
s of ancient Roman and Greek writers such as
Martial Marcus Valerius Martialis (known in English as Martial ; March, between 38 and 41 AD – between 102 and 104 AD) was a Roman poet from Hispania (modern Spain) best known for his twelve books of ''Epigrams'', published in Rome between AD 86 and ...
,
Callimachus Callimachus (; ) was an ancient Greek poet, scholar and librarian who was active in Alexandria during the 3rd century BC. A representative of Ancient Greek literature of the Hellenistic period, he wrote over 800 literary works in a wide variety ...
,
Lucillius Lucillius ( grc-gre, Λουκίλλιος; fl. 60s CE) was the author of one hundred twenty three epigrams in Greek preserved in the ''Greek Anthology.'' He lived under the emperor Nero. Many of his poems describe stereotyped people, such as doctors ...
, and
Catullus Gaius Valerius Catullus (; 84 - 54 BCE), often referred to simply as Catullus (, ), was a Latin poet of the late Roman Republic who wrote chiefly in the neoteric style of poetry, focusing on personal life rather than classical heroes. His s ...
. The
Menippean satire The genre of Menippean satire is a form of satire, usually in prose, that is characterized by attacking mental attitudes rather than specific individuals or entities. It has been broadly described as a mixture of allegory, picaresque narrative, and ...
has been classed as a type of pasquinade. During the
Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...
, statues would be decorated with anonymous brief verses or criticisms.


History

The term became used in late medieval Italian literature, based on a literary character of that name. Most influential was the tome ''Carmina Apposita Pasquino'' (1512) of
Giacomo Mazzocchi Giacomo Mazzocchi, in Latin on his titlepages Jacobus Mazochius, (active 1505 — 1527) was a learned bookseller, printer, and noted antiquarian in papal Rome during the High Renaissance. A native of Bergamo, Mazzocchi is first heard of in 1505 as ...
. As they became more pointed, the place of publication of ''Pasquillorum Tomi Duo'' (1544) was shifted to
Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
, less squarely under papal control, disguised on the titlepage as ''Eleutheropolis'', "freedom city". The term has also been used in various literary satirical lampoons across Europe, and appears in Italian works (
Pietro Aretino Pietro Aretino (, ; 19 or 20 April 1492 – 21 October 1556) was an Italian author, playwright, poet, satirist and blackmailer, who wielded influence on contemporary art and politics. He was one of the most influential writers of his time and a ...
, Mazzocchi), French (
Clément Marot Clément Marot (23 November 1496 – 12 September 1544) was a French Renaissance poet. Biography Youth Marot was born at Cahors, the capital of the province of Quercy, some time during the winter of 1496–1497. His father, Jean Marot (c.&n ...
,
Mellin de Saint-Gelais Mellin de Saint-Gelais (or ''Melin de Saint-Gelays'' or ''Sainct-Gelais''; c. 1491 – October, 1558) was a French poet of the Renaissance and Poet Laureate of Francis I of France. Life He was born at Angoulême, most likely the natural ...
), German, Dutch, Polish (,
Andrzej Krzycki Andrzej Krzycki of the Kotwicz heraldic clan (also Andreas Cricius) (Krzycko Małe, 7 July 1482 – † Skierniewice, 10 May, 1537) was a Renaissance Polish writer and archbishop. Krzycki wrote in Latin prose, but wrote poetry in Polish. He is of ...
, Stanisław Orzechowski, ), and others. The genre also existed in English, with
Thomas Elyot Sir Thomas Elyot (c. 149626 March 1546) was an English diplomat and scholar. He is best known as one of the first proponents of the use of the English language for literary purposes. Early life Thomas was the child of Sir Richard Elyot's firs ...
's ''Pasquill the Playne'' (1532) being referred to as "probably the first English ''pasquinade.''" They have been relatively less common in Russian, Ukrainian, and Belarusian. Most of the known pasquinades are anonymous, distinguishing them from longer and more formal literary satires such as
William Langland William Langland (; la, Willielmus de Langland; 1332 – c. 1386) is the presumed author of a work of Middle English alliterative verse generally known as ''Piers Plowman'', an allegory with a complex variety of religious themes. The poem tr ...
's
Piers Plowman ''Piers Plowman'' (written 1370–86; possibly ) or ''Visio Willelmi de Petro Ploughman'' (''William's Vision of Piers Plowman'') is a Middle English allegorical narrative poem by William Langland. It is written in un-rhymed, alliterative v ...
. Most pasquinades were created as a form of political satire, reacting to contemporary developments, and are generally more concerned with amusing or shocking the readers, and defaming their targets, than with literary qualities. As such, they are rarely considered to be particularly valuable from a literary standpoint; many have not been reprinted and are therefore considered lost. They have, however, historical value, and were seen by their contemporaries as a source of news and opinions, in lieu of non-existent or rare press and other media. Some have been known to be a series of polemics, with multiple pasquinades written in dialogue with another. Some authorities, including royalty and clergy, unsuccessfully attempted to ban or restrict the writing and spread of pasquinades, in comparison to the tolerated "lighter" and more playful parodic texts and
fabliau A ''fabliau'' (; plural ''fabliaux'') is a comic, often anonymous tale written by jongleurs in northeast France between c. 1150 and 1400. They are generally characterized by sexual and scatological obscenity, and by a set of contrary attitudes ...
performed during festivals.


The name as a pseudonym or title

In 1589 one of the contributors to the Marprelate Controversy, a pamphlet war between the
Established Church A state religion (also called religious state or official religion) is a religion or creed officially endorsed by a sovereign state. A state with an official religion (also known as confessional state), while not secular, is not necessarily a t ...
of England and its
puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Catholic Church, Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become m ...
opponents, adopted the pseudonym Pasquill. At the end of his second pamphlet ''The Return of Pasquill'' (published in October 1589), Pasquill invites critics of his opponent
Martin Marprelate Martin Marprelate (sometimes printed as Martin Mar-prelate and Marre–Martin) was the name used by the anonymous author or authors of the seven Marprelate tracts that circulated illegally in England in the years 1588 and 1589. Their principal f ...
to write out their complaints and post them up on
London Stone London Stone is a historic landmark housed at 111 Cannon Street in the City of London. It is an irregular block of oolitic limestone measuring 53 × 43 × 30 cm (21 × 17 × 12"), the remnant of a once much larger object that had stood ...
. ''Pasquin'' is the name of a play by
Henry Fielding Henry Fielding (22 April 1707 – 8 October 1754) was an English novelist, irony writer, and dramatist known for earthy humour and satire. His comic novel '' Tom Jones'' is still widely appreciated. He and Samuel Richardson are seen as founders ...
from 1736. It was a ''pasquinade'' in that it was an explicit and personalized attack on the Prime Minister
Robert Walpole Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, (26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745; known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole) was a British statesman and Whig politician who, as First Lord of the Treasury, Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Leader ...
and his supporters. It is one of the plays that triggered the Theatrical Licensing Act of 1737. ''Anthony Pasquin'' is the pseudonym of
John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who wa ...
(1761–1818) and his satirical writing of royalties, academicians, and actors. ''Pasquino'' was a pen name of J. Fairfax McLaughlin (1939–1903), American lawyer and author. ''Pasquinade'' is the title of a piano solo piece by
Louis Moreau Gottschalk Louis Moreau Gottschalk (May 8, 1829 – December 18, 1869) was an American composer and pianist, best known as a virtuoso performer of his own romantic piano works. He spent most of his working career outside the United States. Life and car ...
. The
Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...
and
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
term ''
Pashkevil A pashkevil ( yi, פּאַשקעוויל; he, פשקוויל pl. pashkevilim ) is a broadside or poster that has been situated on a public wall or location in an Orthodox Jewish community, and most commonly within Hareidi enclaves. Pashkevilim ...
'' is the generic name of the posters put up on the walls of
Ultra-Orthodox Jew Haredi Judaism ( he, ', ; also spelled ''Charedi'' in English; plural ''Haredim'' or ''Charedim'') consists of groups within Orthodox Judaism that are characterized by their strict adherence to ''halakha'' (Jewish law) and traditions, in oppos ...
ish enclaves in
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
. These posters define legitimate behavior, such as prohibitions on owning
smart phones A smartphone is a portable computer device that combines mobile telephone and computing functions into one unit. They are distinguished from feature phones by their stronger hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, which ...
, as well as often being the mouthpiece for radical anti-Zionist groups, such as the ''
Neturei Karta Neturei Karta (Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: , , ) is a religious group of Haredi Jews, formally created in Jerusalem, then in Mandatory Palestine, in 1938, splitting off from Agudas Yisrael. Neturei Karta opposes Zionism and calls for a "pea ...
''.Brother Against Brother: Violence and Extremism in Israeli Politics, E. Sprinzak, 1999, p. 95 ''Pashkevillim'' take the place of conventional media in communities where such media are shunned.


See also

*
Pastiche A pastiche is a work of visual art, literature, theatre, music, or architecture that imitates the style or character of the work of one or more other artists. Unlike parody, pastiche pays homage to the work it imitates, rather than mocking it ...
*
Philippic A philippic ()http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/English/philippic is a fiery, damning speech, or tirade, delivered to condemn a particular political actor. The term is most famously associated with two noted orators of the ancient world: ...


References


External links


thepasquinade.com
online satirical magazine * * {{Authority control Literary genres Satire