Poe's law
Encyclopedia
Poe's law, named after its author Nathan Poe, is an Internet adage
reflecting the fact that without a clear indication of the author's intent, it is difficult or impossible to tell the difference between sincere extremism
and an exaggerated parody of extremism.
The core of Poe's law is that a parody
of something is by nature extreme. That makes it impossible to differentiate from sincere extremism
.
A corollary of Poe's law is the reverse phenomenon: legitimate fundamentalist beliefs being mistaken for a parody of that belief.
A further corollary, the Poe Paradox, results from suspicion of the first corollary. The paradox is that any new person or idea sufficiently extreme to be accepted by the extremist group risks being rejected as a parody or parodist.
The sentiments expressed by Poe date back much further, at least to 1983 when Jerry Schwarz in a post on Usenet
wrote
Another precedent posted on Usenet dates to 2001. Following the well-known schema of Arthur Clarke
's 3rd law
, Alan Morgan wrote
Adage
An adage is a short but memorable saying which holds some important fact of experience that is considered true by many people, or that has gained some credibility through its long use....
reflecting the fact that without a clear indication of the author's intent, it is difficult or impossible to tell the difference between sincere extremism
Extremism
Extremism is any ideology or political act far outside the perceived political center of a society; or otherwise claimed to violate common moral standards...
and an exaggerated parody of extremism.
The law and its meaning
Poe's law states:Without a winking smileySmileyA smiley, smiley face, or happy face, is a stylized representation of a smiling human face, commonly occurring in popular culture. It is commonly represented as a yellow circle with two black dots representing eyes and a black arc representing the mouth...
or other blatant display of humor, it is impossible to create a parody of fundamentalismFundamentalismFundamentalism is strict adherence to specific theological doctrines usually understood as a reaction against Modernist theology. The term "fundamentalism" was originally coined by its supporters to describe a specific package of theological beliefs that developed into a movement within the...
that someone won't mistake for the real thing.
The core of Poe's law is that a parody
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
of something is by nature extreme. That makes it impossible to differentiate from sincere extremism
Extremism
Extremism is any ideology or political act far outside the perceived political center of a society; or otherwise claimed to violate common moral standards...
.
A corollary of Poe's law is the reverse phenomenon: legitimate fundamentalist beliefs being mistaken for a parody of that belief.
A further corollary, the Poe Paradox, results from suspicion of the first corollary. The paradox is that any new person or idea sufficiently extreme to be accepted by the extremist group risks being rejected as a parody or parodist.
History
The statement called Poe's law was formulated in 2005 by Nathan Poe on the website christianforums.com in a debate about creationism. The original sentence read “Without a winking smiley or other blatant display of humor, it is uttrerly [sic] impossible to parody a Creationist in such a way that someone won’t mistake [it] for the genuine article.”The sentiments expressed by Poe date back much further, at least to 1983 when Jerry Schwarz in a post on Usenet
Usenet
Usenet is a worldwide distributed Internet discussion system. It developed from the general purpose UUCP architecture of the same name.Duke University graduate students Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979 and it was established in 1980...
wrote
8. Avoid sarcasm and facetious remarks.
Without the voice inflection and body language of personal communication these are easily misinterpreted. A
sideways smile, :-), has become widely accepted on the net as an indication that "I'm only kidding".
If you submit a satiric item without this symbol, no matter how obvious the satire is to you, do not be surprised if people take it seriously.
Another precedent posted on Usenet dates to 2001. Following the well-known schema of Arthur Clarke
Arthur C. Clarke
Sir Arthur Charles Clarke, CBE, FRAS was a British science fiction author, inventor, and futurist, famous for his short stories and novels, among them 2001: A Space Odyssey, and as a host and commentator in the British television series Mysterious World. For many years, Robert A. Heinlein,...
's 3rd law
Clarke's three laws
Clarke's Three Laws are three "laws" of prediction formulated by the British writer and scientist Arthur C. Clarke. They are:# When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right...
, Alan Morgan wrote
Any sufficiently advanced parody is indistinguishable from a genuine kook.
See also
- Betty BowersBetty BowersBetty Bowers is the fictional central character on the satirical website BettyBowers.com. The character is a parody of a hypocritical American Christian.The character and the content associated with the character were created by writer Paul A. Bradley...
- ChristwireChristwireChristwire is a satirical website that publishes blog style articles that highlight perceived excesses of Christian conservatives along with derogatory slang, homophobic references, and hints at child abuse....
- Landover Baptist ChurchLandover Baptist ChurchThe Landover Baptist Church is a fictional Baptist church based in the fictional town of Freehold, Iowa. The Landover Baptist web site and its associated Landoverbaptist.net Forum are a satire of fundamentalist Christianity and the Religious Right in the United States.-Origin:The site was created...