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Abstract This article proposes that the philosophical techniques found in contemporary satires can be understood using a spectrum that ranges between the cynical and the kynical. Cynicism is the belief that there is no hope for change, that truth is dead, while kynicism – a non-nihilistic form of cynicism – maintains that truth does exist, and is worth saving from political and media manipulations. By exploring the evolution of kynicism, from its origins in ancient Greek philosophy to its presence in contemporary satire, I analyze how
Rebecca Higgie (2014) studied this question.