Sarcasm: Definition & Examples

Sarcasm is a form of verbal irony that involves using words in such a way that they mean the opposite of what is said, especially for the purpose of insulting someone, expressing annoyance or irritation, or showcasing humor. Sarcasm is often less a literary device and more of a tone, which is applicable both in everyday life and literature.

For example, if you tell someone “Oh. Wow. I never thought of that” as a response to an obvious answer that you have already considered, it’s like calling the person stupid. For that reason, sarcasm is a type of humor that is often described as “caustic.” 

To prove the point, let’s look at its Greek origin. The word derives from the Ancient Greek σαρκασμός (sarkasmós), which means "to tear flesh, bite the lip in rage, sneer.” 

Sarcasm is typically employed in a form of literature known as satire. It typically exists in two principal forms. The first is the most obvious and is used in everyday speech. This is where one says the exact opposite of what one means in a mocking way.

For example, telling someone “Oh what a bright idea, Einstein” when you think their idea is not a very smart one. It can be used both as an insult or for humor. The following shows an ad that employs sarcasm for humorous effect from a fitness studio in Germany: 

Here, the reader is being called ugly, while being motivated to do something positive about losing weight. The sarcasm is based in the fact that the reader is being encouraged to take positive action to lose weight while being told there is nothing they can do about being ugly. 

The other form of sarcasm is related to satire, a type of literature that uses humor, irony, parody, or ridicule to critique specific individuals or social values. In this article, we examine examples of satire in films and works of literature.

Examples of sarcasm in literature

In literature, sarcasm typically takes the form of satire. This involves using humor, mockery, and wit to mock specific individuals or institutions in society. A good example of this is John Dryden’s Mac Flecknoe (published in 1682):

1. Dryden, "Mac Flecknoe" (1682):

This aged prince now flourishing in peace,

And blest with issue of a large increase,

Worn out with business, did at length debate

To settle the succession of the State:

And pond'ring which of all his sons was fit

To reign, and wage immortal war with wit;

Shadwell alone my perfect image bears,

Mature in dullness from his tender years.

Shadwell alone, of all my sons, is he

Who stands confirm'd in full stupidity.

In the poem, Mac Flecknoe is a notoriously bad poet, who Dryden sets up as the king of bad poetry and therefore the ancestor  of his rival Shadwell. Shadwell is portrayed as the fitting heir of the bad taste in literature that Mac Flecknoe represents and is described as “mature in dullness.”  

The sarcasm in the poem centers around the fact that the analogy is that of coronation, which is usually a positive event. Being crowned a king or inheritor of a kingdom would be a good thing. But here the inheritance is stupidity and bad taste in poetry. So, it’s a compliment with a barb in it. 

Another example of sarcasm in a satirical play is Alexander Pope’s “Rape of the Lock” (published in 1712): 

2. Alexander Pope, “Rape of the Lock” (1712):

Say what strange motive, Goddess! could compel

A well-bred lord t' assault a gentle belle?

O say what stranger cause, yet unexplor'd,

Could make a gentle belle reject a lord?

In tasks so bold, can little men engage,

And in soft bosoms dwells such mighty rage?

The poem is a satire on a young cutting a lock of hair from a young lady, who gets pretty upset at it. The adjectives used to describe the act and emotions are exaggerated compliments.

The young man is likened to a mighty Greek hero from an epic tragedy when the petty act is described as “tasks so bold.” The young lady is compared to a Goddess in wrath when her “soft bosoms” are described as harboring “mighty rage.” 

The poem is a parody of classical epics such as Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey.  It therefore uses the high language we associate with such works of art. The sarcasm lies in the fact that both individuals are being criticized for an event that is childish and petty by being compared to noble personages from the classics. 

The clown Jeste in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night (Act 2, Scene 4) provides a good example of sarcasm when he mocks the affectations of Orsino, regarding his fake melancholy and pining over a woman (Olivia) who he pursues and who has no interest in him.

3. Shakespeare, Twelfth Night (Act 2, Scene 4):

Now the melancholy god protect thee and the

tailor make thy doublet of changeable taffeta, for thy

mind is a very opal. I would have men of such

constancy put to sea, that their business might be

everything and their intent everywhere, for that’s it

that always makes a good voyage of nothing.

Farewell.

Here the clown is "praising" Orsino for his shifting emotions. This means one minute he is sad and the next he feels excited about pursuing Viola. Feste uses the phrase "the doublet of changeable taffeta." Doublet refers to a type of jacket, and taffeta is a type of cloth.

This means that the clown hopes his clothes match his lack of emotional consistency. The same idea is suggested with reference to opal, a kind of precious stone that refracts light into rainbow colors. This is not a compliment. Jeste is mocking Orsino. Asking for the god of melancholy to protect Orsino is simply a complimentary cover for criticizing his childish lack of emotional constancy.

Feste further mocks Orsino by saying men like him should be sailors so that their "business might be everything and their intent everywhere." This means that the life of Orsino is spent in meaningless pursuits of fulfilling his constantly changing emotions.

Another example of sarcasm can be found in The Great Gatsby (1925). The Great Gatsby, which was written by Fitzgerald in 1925 centers around an illicit romantic relationship between the titular character, Gatsby, and a married woman named Daisy, whose husband is Tom. Nick is the narrator of the story as well as Daisy's cousin. He talks about an instant where the two lovers were at his home meeting each other

4. Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (1925)

Then they sauntered over to my house and sat on the steps for half an hour, while at her request I remained watchfully in the garden. "In case there's a fire or a flood," she explained, "or any act of God.

Daisy has asked Nick to look out for her husband, Tom while she spends time with Gatsby. The sarcasm lies in the fact that she describes it as "fire or a flood . . . or any act of God." This could be one of two things. Daisy is slightly embarrassed by asking her cousin Nick to stand on guard as she cheats so uses a reference to natural disasters instead of her husband's name.

The second possibility is that she is referring to Tom's potential for violence and his raging temper. In short, she is saying that if her husband catches teh two of them the result will be violence of the sort we associate with a flood or earthquake.

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Examples of sarcasm in film 

In Wolf Hall, A BBC series about King Henry, the mocks the idea of taking the advice from his peasant subjects that his counselor Cromwell should be fired: 

And who would advise me when Lord Cromwell is put down? Will these rebels do it? Colin Clump and Peter Pisspidle and Old Grandpa Gaphead and his goat?

The king here is mocking the idea of replacing Cromwell with uneducated peasant subjects. The alliterative names that he uses for them all suggest how little he thinks of them and how stupid he thinks they are. In short, he is pouring scorn on them at the idea of them being his advisors. 

However, what is more interesting is the possible second layer of sarcasm in the king's response. The king says of Cromwell's appointment as counselor:

When I choose a humble man for my counselor, he is no more humble. I made my Minister, and by God, I will maintain him. If I say Cromwell is a lord, then he is a Lord. And if I say Cromwell's heirs will follow me and rule England, then by God they will do it.

The first two sentences are indeed true. Cromwell was a man of humble background who King Henry made into a lord and his counselor because Cromwell was a skilled administrator. However, the king was going too far when he talked about the possibility of turning the heirs of Cromwell into the rulers of England.

King Henry had a bad habit of using advisors and counselors like Cromwell and disposing of them through imprisonment or death after having no use of them. This he did to Cromwell's mentor Cardinal Wolsey, who died in imprisonment. Cromwell eventually met an even worse fate by having his head unceremoniously chopped off by King Henry.

Therefore, one could say by claiming that Cromwell's heirs would inherit England, the king was being sarcastic, knowing full well that he had every intention of executing Cromwell if he was displeased by the man's performance in his service.

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Cite this EminentEdit article

Antoine, M. (2025, May 14). Sarcasm: Definition & Examples. EminentEdit. https://www.eminentediting.com/post/sarcasm-definition-examples