Some philosophers of old thought of humour and comedy as bad things. Plato detested comedy because it is often at the expense of another person. Epictetus is said never to have laughed; he saw it as a mark of weakness. Over time, humour has come to attract special attention in Philosophy and Literature as a mode of thought, existential expression, and communication. Works of great philosophers such as Bertrand Russell and Slovaj Žižek are clothed in wit and playfulness, something that has significantly contributed to their appeal. Satire has become one of the predominant ways of speaking truth to power and convention. It is a weapon of the weak; a vessel through which otherwise unacceptable views are relayed to the powerful. It is like pressing boils while blowing them with cool air.