Is laughter the best weapon? A Wiltshire builder has used it to get his own back on a local politician. He is far from the first to make fun of an important person.
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Meet the gargoyle who runs a town council
Is laughter the best weapon? A Wiltshire builder has used it to get his own back on a local politician. He is far from the first to make fun of an important person.
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What's happening?
Michael Thomas could not stop laughing. The builder had been told by the local councilA group of people who meet regularly to help run a city, town or other area. to stop his building project. But he had taken his revenge - by ordering a gargoyle (or more accurately, a grotesqueA figure or face carved out of stone and fixed to the roof or walls of a building. They are similar to gargoyles, but gargoyles include a spout for water to drain through. ) of the council's leader. It was the talk of the town!
Earlier this year a statue of the ex-king Juan Carlos, who hunts animals, appeared in Spain. The statue showed him pointing a gun at the city's mascot, a bear. Juan Carlos probably did not find it funny.
Not many leaders are good at taking a joke. But that has not has stopped artists and writers making fun of them throughout history.
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The Roman poet JuvenalDecimus Junius Juvenalis was a Roman satirical poet. became famous for his writing in the 1st Century. But he was made to leave after insultingSay something that hurts someone's feelings. an actor who was popular with the emperor.
Some argue that laughing at important people is more important today than ever before. Powerful leaders often use fear to control the people they rule. But if the people are laughing at them, they are not afraid.
One example took place 10 years ago during huge protests in EgyptA country linking northeast Africa with the Middle East. . Protestors showed Egypt's leader Mohammed Morsi - as Super Mario.
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Is laughter the best weapon?
Yes! Funny things tend to stick in people's minds more than serious ones. It is very hard for leaders to complain - because they only look more silly!
No! Laughing at leaders can be very fun. But it does not really achieve much. Instead, if we are unhappy with our leaders we should make suggestions for how things can be better.
Keywords
Council - A group of people who meet regularly to help run a city, town or other area.
Grotesque - A figure or face carved out of stone and fixed to the roof or walls of a building. They are similar to gargoyles, but gargoyles include a spout for water to drain through.
Juvenal - Decimus Junius Juvenalis was a Roman satirical poet.
Insulting - Say something that hurts someone's feelings.
Egypt - A country linking northeast Africa with the Middle East.
Meet the gargoyle who runs a town council
Old joke: Gargoyles based on real people are a feature of many medieval buildings. Glossary
Council - A group of people who meet regularly to help run a city, town or other area.
Grotesque - A figure or face carved out of stone and fixed to the roof or walls of a building. They are similar to gargoyles, but gargoyles include a spout for water to drain through.
Juvenal - Decimus Junius Juvenalis was a Roman satirical poet.
Insulting - Say something that hurts someone's feelings.
Egypt - A country linking northeast Africa with the Middle East.