Parody
Parody is a comic or critical imitation of another poem, poet, style, genre, voice, song, speech, or familiar form. It borrows recognizable features from the original and exaggerates, twists, lowers, or redirects them for humor, satire, affection, mockery, or criticism.

A parody often includes imitation, exaggeration, comic contrast, changed subject matter, recognizable rhythm, borrowed diction, inflated tone, or deliberate mismatch between style and content. The reader usually needs to recognize the original style or convention for the joke to fully work.

To write a parody, choose the poem, genre, or style being imitated. Identify its most recognizable habits: rhythm, repeated phrases, subject matter, elevated tone, dramatic gestures, rhyme, line length, or favorite images. Then apply those habits to an unexpected or ridiculous subject.

Heroic Ode to a Missing Sock

O noble sock, once paired and true,
Where has the dryer carried you?
Did linty dragons block your way?
Did cotton kings demand your stay?

I mourn you by the laundry wall,
The bravest foot-cloth of them all.

“Heroic Ode to a Missing Sock” follows parody by using elevated heroic language for a trivial household subject. The grand tone clashes with the missing sock, creating the comic effect.

Parody is a traditional comic and satirical mode. A parody may be affectionate, mocking, political, literary, childish, sharp, or absurd. A WoPoLian parody may imitate a poetic form inside the book while changing the subject so dramatically that the old style becomes comic.