This collection of twenty-nine original essays, surveys satire from its emergence in Western literature to the present. * Tracks satire from its first appearances in the prophetic books of the Old Testament through the Renaissance and the English tradition in satire to Michael Moore's satirical movie Fahrenheit 9/11. * Highlights the important influence of the Bible in the literary and cultural development of Western satire. * Focused mainly on major classical and European influences on and works of English satire, but also explores the complex and fertile cultural cross-semination within the tradition of literary satire.