Irony and sarcasm are similar but not the same. Irony can be verbal, dramatic, or situational, while sarcasm is strictly verbal and a type of verbal irony. Irony refers to any circumstance that doesn’t mean what it appears to mean, while sarcasm is a bitter and critical statement that means the opposite of what is said. Irony can include nonverbal contradictions, while sarcasm only exists within the verbal realm.
While similar, irony and sarcasm don’t necessarily refer to the same thing. Irony appears in several forms, including verbal, dramatic, and situational irony. Sarcasm is strictly verbal and can also be classified as a type of verbal irony. A situation can be ironic without being sarcastic, but a sarcastic statement must also be ironic.
In general, irony refers to any circumstance that doesn’t mean what it appears to mean on the surface. This circumstance can come in the form of a situation, action or statement made by an individual, whether in a work of fiction or in reality. The truth behind the specific circumstance is usually in complete opposition to the more obvious expectations the reader or listener would have regarding the circumstance. While both irony and sarcasm rely on the differences between appearance and reality to make a point, irony encompasses a wider range of circumstances.
Dramatic irony, for example, occurs in a work of literature when a character makes a statement that applies to his or her situation without the character realizing it. If a girl in a story claims that no one would dare to steal her bike when, unbeknownst to her, the bike was stolen in the previous chapter, dramatic irony has occurred. In situational irony, an event unfolds in a completely opposite way to what the reader or viewer might expect. A bald man who wins a set of curlers as a lottery prize has a situationally ironic circumstance. While the outcome of the situation makes no practical sense, the polar opposition between outcome and expectation makes that outcome seem appropriate.
Verbal irony occurs when a speaker makes a statement that means something opposite to what the literal interpretation implies. Sarcasm is the most common and purest form of verbal irony, but verbal irony and sarcasm are not interchangeable terms. Exaggeration and understatement also fall into the category of verbal irony. A speaker who says he is having “the best day of his life” uses exaggeration, also called exaggeration or hyperbole, to describe a normally good day. Conversely, someone who says his day isn’t “too bad” when he’s having an extraordinarily good day is putting it mildly.
With sarcasm, the superficial meaning of the speaker’s statement is in direct opposition to the real meaning behind his or her words. Sarcasm is often meant in a bitter and critical way. For example, a girl who says to her rival, “I love your new blouse,” when she actually hates her, uses verbal irony and sarcasm harshly. However, not all sarcasm is bad. A boy who says to a brother, “Mom and Dad are going to be so disappointed,” after the brother passes a test or wins a sports match, uses sarcasm in a friendly, light-hearted way.
Regardless of how the speaker or writer uses sarcasm, the truth behind a sarcastic statement always directly contrasts with the literal meaning of the words. Other forms of irony and sarcasm both share a reliance on the polar opposition between truth and appearance. Irony can include nonverbal contradictions, however, while sarcasm only exists within the verbal realm.
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