Through ........ the ills of society are criticised with the objective of having them corrected

Step 1: Analyze the question The question asks which literary device or technique is used to criticise the ills (vices, follies, weaknesses) of society with the aim of correcting them. The key phrases are "criticised" and "objective of having them corrected."

Step 2: Explain the concepts

• Dramatic irony: The audience knows something the characters do not. It creates tension or humour, but it is not about criticising society.
• Comic relief: A funny scene or character placed in a serious or tragic work to lighten the mood, such as the Porter in Shakespeare's Macbeth. It does not aim to correct society.
• Satire: The use of humour, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticise human foolishness and social vices, with the purpose of bringing about reform. Examples are Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels and Wole Soyinka's The Trials of Brother Jero, which mocks religious hypocrisy.
• Farce: Comedy built on absurd situations, exaggerated actions, and slapstick. Its main aim is to make the audience laugh, not to reform society.

Step 3: Match the definition to the options The question describes a technique that criticises societal ills in order to correct them. That is the definition of satire.

Step 4: Answer The correct option is C. satire.

Exam tip: Link each term to its purpose:

• Satire = Society's faults Attacked to Transform it (to reform)
• Farce = Fun and Foolish situations
• Comic relief = Relaxes tension
• Dramatic irony = the audience knows more than the characters

Whenever you see "criticise," "ridicule," "expose vices," or "reform society" in a question, think satire.