* The Old Comedy of Ancient Greece: Playwrights like Aristophanes (c. 446-386 BC) wrote satirical plays like "Lysistrata" and "The Birds," mocking political figures, social customs, and philosophical ideas. These works are often considered the earliest examples of formal, political satire.
* The Roman Satirists: Horace (65-8 BC) and Juvenal (c. 60-127 AD) were Roman satirists who used their writing to criticize society, politics, and human behavior. Their works, which often used biting wit and humor, helped shape the development of satire as a literary genre.
* The "Satyricon" by Petronius: This work from the 1st century AD is a satirical novel that mocks the Roman social scene, often through grotesque humor and bawdy situations. It's a crucial early example of satirical fiction.
* "The Canterbury Tales" by Geoffrey Chaucer: This 14th-century work, while not entirely satirical, contains many satirical elements that poke fun at the clergy, nobility, and different social classes.
Ultimately, the "first major satire" is a matter of interpretation. These early examples demonstrate that the use of satire to critique society, politics, and human behavior has a long and complex history.