In 1781 Franklin was not an elected official but already appointed ambassador to France. It is a lot easier to write satire if you don’t depend on the masses fo

In 1781 Franklin was not an elected official but already appointed ambassador to France. It is a lot easier to write satire if you don’t depend on the masses for their votes and have to stay on their good side. Also, a look at classic literature will show that the degree to which scatological humor is accepted, varies with time. Chaucer, whose work was massively respected in the late 14th and early 15th centuries, made jokes about farting and ass-licking that seem appalling to readers today. And I think a lot of HN readers already know about Mozart’s work Leck mich im Arsch.