Sarcasm is the least efficient form of written communication

since it spends its verbiage telling the reader only what the writer does NOT believe (while espousing contempt).

Popularized by adolescent-targeted TV shows, sarcasm is increasing. Often called "the lowest form of wit," sarcasm belittles others' viewpoints and attacks them personally while advancing no counter-argument. It is a highly judgmental form of bullying.

Further, sarcasm in the written word lacks the auditory clues that are key to understanding it as such. It is passive aggressive behavior which can actually stifle productive debate.

rather than written.

Since you can see the person's facial expressions and hear their tone of voice, their meaning is pretty clear.

some comments don't deserve anything but laughter or ridicule....TO do anything else gives them credibility they in no way deserve.

The author has done a piss poor job of communicating intent.

It's all about word choice and phrasing.


But as a way to further debate...there I'm in agreement.

Sarcasm can serve to expose the absurdity of ideas and beliefs that simply aren't worthy of normal debate.

if your opponent puts up a flawed or absurd idea, then it would seem the way to win is to simply advance a better one. If swaying an audience is the goal then the rudeness of sarcasm may work against the one employing it.

Brits ,on the other hand are slap down masters of it.It's as easy to pick up in the written word as it is verbally. I don't know who you're quoting as it being "the lowest form of wit", but it is far from it.

per google:

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&source=hp&q=lowest+form+of+wit&aq=f&aqi=g4g-m6&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=CmT_HGDgdTMDHD4LygwTmx-njDAAAAKoEBU_QVFGC&fp=c8411ce5a7e9a208

Sarcasm is my favorite form of humor.

Or am I being sarcastic?

:sarcasm:

















:hide:

Couldn't it be said that the written word is the least efficient form of sarcasm? I'm not being sarcastic here. The fact that I have to state that is what I'm talking about. Does this make sense?

Ignorance is the least efficient form of written communication.

"He knew all the tricks, dramatic irony, metaphor, bathos, puns, parody, litotes and... satire. He was vicious."

communication, something has to be worse.

Adding color to something - if no one ever used it, and you got all literal means of saying the same thing - it would just be repetitive.

Sarcasm can be an effective technique to highlight absurdity and illogic.

i.e. "Of course men are the most highly valued members of society. That's why the chauvinist creator of the Vietnam Memorial only put mens names on it."

When I go to Free Republic I always give full respect to all their ideas.

sarcasm (and sometimes humor in general). I've met plenty.

My neighbor used sarcasm with her 4 year-old and it just confused him.

...and certainly more efficient than 'legalese'.

I find it useful at times as a means of expressing contempt for ideas and arguments that are so stupid that they don't merit a thoughtful response.

:rofl:

:sarcasm:

Hitler. That's right. You heard me: Hitler. The Fuhrer and his Nazis valorized efficiency, modeling their regime on the streamlined command structure of the military. They pointed to the national trait of German efficiency as proof of their Master Race status. The Blitzkrieg was the most efficient decapitating stroke that modern maneuver, mechanized hardware, and the logistics of the day could combine to produce. And look what came of it. Look what came of all that Nazi worship of efficiency. Maybe efficiency is just a little bit overrated?

You can do something efficient and fast, or you can do it right.

:rofl:

.

amounting to a "Defense in depth" and, in combination with her other womanly charms, far more than any occasion would have required to maintain her celibacy. So you see how efficiency is a false virtue, eschewed by the righteous.

While sarcasm works quite well verbally, it tends to fail miserably in written communication unless the reader personally knows the author or is otherwise knowledgeable of the author's beliefs. Otherwise it tends to be taken literally due to there being no verbal clues to indicate that it was not meant to be taken literally.

And it is puns that are the least of wit.

I wouldn't post something I didn't believe. It is not an original thought but one that I agree with.

Puns are light-hearted and creative.

I disagree about puns, but, of course, there are a lot of puns, so there must be some worthwhile ones. Sarcasm is similar.

does NOT believe. That is low efficiency. And it also engenders confusion for some readers which moves the efficiency score even lower.

People who "get" sarcasm appreciate the "bait and switch," of the play of words.

While the same people who don't get sarcasm totally don't get puns.

A bad pun can add a smell to the cerebellum.

Sarcasm with little kids is futile. You have to explain.

And no, that stupid little blood dripping emoticon doesn't help.

At least when dealing with politics..

It's a corollary of Poe's Law..

http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Poe's_Law

Edited for phrasing..

that most people are too stupid to pick up on it.

All of the problems in the country are met by violence as a solution - it's an adolescent answer for every problem.

Crime is met with more violent police.

Islamic fanaticism is met with wars that kill innocents.

Everyone is continually thrown into a state of attack and defend - fight or flight.

It is because when people are in this mode, they can not find the reasonable solutions to their problems that the power-brokers like to escalate it through the support for violent media nad pundits like Beck and Limbaugh.

What make humans survive - our violence or our ability to come together and share with and love one another. Obviously it is the latter or we would have long since killed each-other off.


That said, if done properly it can be humorous instead of hurtful.

Parody, on the other hand, should be made king.
Sarcasm is making mean fun of the other man's dirty stinking socks.
Parody is putting the other man's dirty stinking socks on
& going for a nice long walk around the neighborhood in them. :*

When I went back to University in my 40's and I worked on the school paper, we had a section of reporting the latest police blotter reports on campus.

Most items were ripe for mockery, but there is a BIG difference between ridicule and sarcasm.
Mockery of the victims was off limits, but all pomposity was fair game.

The right wing practices a lot of ridiculing of victims.

The left wing loves delicious sarcasm that pops the bubble of rich, greedy people.

I so enjoy it when someone gives advice about sarcasm.

It is ALWAYS so very welcome.

not

Then comes hyperbole. Writers who abuse that deserve to be taken out and shot.