Word Confusion: Irony vs Sarcasm vs Satire

Posted October 10, 2023 by Kathy Davie in Book Reviews

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In this word confusion irony vs sarcasm vs satire, the latter two are variations of irony and use various flavors of humor.

Irony goes for humor or for an emphatic effect to poke at situations or people, using language that normally signifies the opposite.

Sarcasm is a figure of speech and a type of verbal irony that mocks, ridicules, or expresses contempt of someone with the intent to criticize. I wouldn’t do that!

Satire pokes at contemporary and other topical issues to expose and criticize people’s stupidity, hypocrisy, or vices.

NOTE: I’m ignoring the adjectival form of irony, as it has no relevance to these three.

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Exploring Later . . .

You may want to read up on sarcasm in the post on “Figures of Speech”, “Parody versus Satire“, and/or the Properly Punctuated post, “The Silent Comedian, or When Quotes = Sarcasm“.

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Word Confusions . . .

. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.

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Irony	Sarcasm	Satire
Oh Irony! by Romana Klee is under the CC BY-SA 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons.	Did Sarcasm Go Undetected Again? by jesulvis is under the Public Domain Mark 1.0 license, via Flickr.	Satirical Safety by Arvin61r58 is under the CC0 1.0 license, via OpenClipArt.
Part of Grammar:
Noun Plural: ironies	Noun Plural: sarcasm	Noun Plural: satires
The expression of one’s meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect A state of affairs or an event that seems deliberately contrary to what one expects and is often amusing as a result [Also dramatic or tragic irony] A literary technique, originally used in Greek tragedy, by which the full significance of a character’s words or actions are clear to the audience or reader although unknown to the character	[Can only be used in dialogue] A form of verbal irony that mocks, ridicules, or expresses contempt of someone	The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people’s stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues A play, novel, film, or other work which uses satire A genre of literature characterized by the use of satire [In Latin literature] A literary miscellany, especially a poem ridiculing prevalent vices or follies
Examples:
“Don’t go overboard with the gratitude,” he rejoined with heavy irony. The irony is that I thought he could help me. It was just one of life’s little ironies. The irony is that I thought he could help me. Ah, the tragic irony of Romeo and Juliet when Romeo believes that Juliet is dead and so drinks the poison that kills him only for Juliet to rise, realize Romeo is dead, and stab herself.	His voice, hardened by sarcasm, could not hide his resentment. She took his sarcasm as a sign that he felt better. Kara took the joke seriously because she was too credulous to understand the sarcasm. His voice held a hint of sarcasm. It was hard to tell whether the sarcasm had gone over his head or he simply wasn’t amused.	This poem was a brilliant satire on contemporary manners, and enjoyed an extraordinary success. There is some truth in the satire, but it wholly misrepresents her rupture with Chopin. In point of form the satire of Lucilius owed nothing to the Greeks. These were written in their author’s chosen vein of light satire, and Dryden praised them as highly effective within their own range. In 1559 du Bellay published at Poitiers La Nouvelle Maniere de faire son profit des lettres, a satirical epistle translated from the Latin of Adrien Turnebe, and with it Le Poete courtisan, which introduced the formal satire into French poetry.
Derivatives:
Adjective: ironic, ironical Adverb: ironically	Adjective: sarcastic Adverb: sarcastically	Adjective: satiric, satirical Adverb: satirically Noun: nonsatire, satirist Verb: satirize
History of the Word:
Early 16th century (also denoting Socratic irony), via the Latin from the Greek eirōneia meaning simulated ignorance, from eirōn meaning dissembler.	Mid-16th century from the French sarcasme, or via the late Latin from the late Greek sarkasmos, from the Greek sarkazein meaning tear flesh, in the late Greek meaning gnash the teeth, speak bitterly, from sarx, sark- meaning flesh.	Early 16th century from the French, or from the Latin satira, a later form of satura meaning poetic medley.

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C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!

Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.

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