Satirical Techniques Used In 'Mad As Hell'

Humour is a commonly used technique in English literature; it is put into practice by speeches and various pieces of writing, from poetry to prose. Humour is used to convey an idea or underlying message or to simply amuse the reader. Mad as Hell is a multi-award winning Australian comedy news television program hosted by Shaun Micallef which has gained traction over the last few years. Mad as Hell is well known for being able to incorporate various humour techniques such as understatement, allusion, irony, sight gags, and especially satire as well as others; it is as a result of the variety of techniques, a great example of this is the 8th episode of season 5.

Lots of very powerful techniques were used in the Mad as Hell episode. Understatement, irony, and contradictions. The first technique we saw used in this film was an understatement; this took place in a hospital where a man suffering from severe internal injuries and broken bones was admitted into the emergency department. When the doctor came to consult on the patient’s injuries, in a tone which seemed to be detached from the situation the doctor says to the patient “any reasons you didn’t see your GP?”. She then continued and said “you can’t go clogging up emergency rooms, we’ve got people who need these gurneys”. Amidst this dialogue, a woman in the room
One of the highlights of the episode was when discussing how hospitals in Australia can be improved to be better than those in Nauru, Shaun calls for the incompetent doctor from earlier for her insights on the topic. This scene was very entertaining for viewers because of the irony in the story. It was very tongue-in-cheek to see the doctor who was previously seen being insensitive towards patient’s needs acting as a panellist giving her view on how hospital care should be