Sarcasm
From Freepedia
Sarcasm is sneering, jesting, or mocking a person, situation or thing. It is often used in a humorous or ironical manner and is expressed through vocal intonations such as over-emphasizing the actual statement or particular words.
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Origins
The word comes from the late Latin word, sarcasmus, which, in turn, comes from the Greek sarkasmos, from sarkazein - to bite the lips in rage,- from sarx, sark-, flesh - the root word literally means "to cut a piece of flesh (from the targeted person)."
It is proverbially described as "the lowest form of wit" (a quotation sometimes ascribed incorrectly to Oscar Wilde, but untraceable). In 1983, Leonard Rossiter published a book titled The Lowest Form of Wit (ISBN 0722175132) which includes the history of sarcasm, rules of sarcasm, and many sarcastic comments (some of which are questionable) by notable individuals.
Usage
The term is frequently misused as a synonym for irony. Irony refers however to the literal meaning and the intended meaning of the words uttered being different, while sarcasm refers to the mocking intent of the utterance. It is possible to be ironic without being sarcastic, and to be sarcastic without being ironic.
Sarcasm is also regularly confused with cynicism, which in common use is seen as a fundamental nihilistic attitude toward other people and life in general, whereas sarcasm can also be used to express positive ideas or sentiments.
Sarcasm in electronic communication
Because it is vocally-oriented, sarcasm can be difficult to grasp in written form and is easily misinterpreted. To prevent this some people end sarcastic comments on the Internet with an emoticon, emphasize words with italics, bold, and/or underlining (e.g. That's just great), or surround them with a made-up XML tag, e.g. <sarcasm> or <snicker>.
In the UK, television subtitles for those with impaired hearing have adopted the use of (!) (an exclamation mark in parentheses) following speech in which sarcasm or irony is perceptible via the tone of voice.
