The Science of Sarcastic World
Explore the most twisted humor.
Today’s world holds several types of humor, and each one is unique in its own way. For example, if you use self-deprecating humor, it’s a sign you have good self-awareness and can disparage yourself. On the other hand, if you decide to go with a slapstick, you are probably bold and have great acting skills. And if you’re more of a hyperbole type, your imagination is probably bigger than the whole universe.
One person can enjoy and be good at numerous types of humor, but one mind can’t comprehend them all.
Some people only manage to understand light humor, which doesn’t require much thinking, and the joke itself is sowed in the act and appearance. And other people rather experiment with more of a brain triggering humor such as irony, satire, or sarcasm.
This contrast puts society in a difficult position. People often struggle to adapt to a certain type of humor or are perceived as empty-headed for humor that doesn’t fit within a particular social circle.
Sarcasm belongs to the more intellectual type of humor, and it definitely found its haters in today’s society. It’s humor full of questions and suspicion. Some people see it as aggressive humor aiming to hurt others. And a lot of people dislike it because of its meaning, harshness, and pointless use.
But despite its negative aspects, it is still one of the most used types of humor. It’s funny, smart, and uplifting if you know how to use it. Moreover, it earns people respect no matter how successful they are with their jokes.
If you struggle to understand sarcasm or it feels mean to you, it’s possible, you don’t understand it correctly. If you know someone who appears to be eccentric or gives you a dumb impression, there is a chance you’re just missing their jokes the whole time.
The joke always goes first
“Was he serious or not?” This thought came across everybody’s mind at least once in their life. In certain situations, we wonder whether or not to laugh. Sadly, sarcastic jokes are oftentimes looked down on because they are tough to identify.
We exert ourselves to understand them and feel left out once we can’t label sarcastic meaning in a sentence. But, in reality, the jokes are pretty simple and very easy to detect.
People use sarcasm to lighten up the mood. To turn bad things into good ones and gloomy ones into funny ones. It’s usually done by changing the sentence's meaning — by saying the absolute opposite for no apparent reason. And this twisted meaning is paradoxically the biggest problem of our population.
Sarcastic jokes themselves are not stupid, they are not complicated, and most of the time, they actually make sense. But the anticipation is you will think before you react and make any conclusion. Or better, don’t think at all.
We sometimes think way too much, which makes our brains foggy. We ponder over intentions and motives and cannot see clearly; hence we shift every sarcasm into its literal meaning.
So, the number one advice — joke always goes first. When you hear a sentence, and you’re not sure about its meaning. Think about it as a joke first. Then, if it sounds off after a few seconds, you can think about it as a sincere sentence.
It may sound obvious, but those who struggle usually do it the other way around. Sarcasm commonly emphasizes certain words to be more recognizable, but it’s not necessarily the rule of thumb. So-called deadpan doesn’t require any facial expression or change in voice, and it’s still hilarious.
If you stop studying it so much, you are guaranteed to detect a greater deal of sarcastic humor around you. You realize your coworkers aren’t furious after all. They just mess around with every word for the sake of having a better day.
Sarcasm is more than just teasing
A well-developed sense of humor is the pole that adds balance to your steps as you walk the tightrope of life.
— William Arthur Ward
There are two types of people. People who want to turn every sentence into a conversation — those are the people who never quite understand your jokes. And people who smell jokes behind every sentence — those are the people who recognize sarcasm when it’s said.
So, there must be a reason for this diversification. Why would part of the world live in total sincerity and the rest in a lie? Well, the lie has its benefits.
Sarcasm can enhance our creative thinking and problem-solving (Miron-Spektor et al., 2011). It was proved that children young as 10 years old can understand the sarcastic principle and even use it in a conversation. Unlike literal sentences, sarcastic lines exercise the brain cells, hence contribute to our personal growth(Glenwright & Pexman, 2010)
Once you start socializing and accumulating contextual information in your head, there is no doubt you will hear sarcasm miles away. You increase your chances even more if you get rid of the impact of your surroundings. The brain can pick up on the meaning the most once it’s free from any influence.
No wonder people use it daily; it helps them grow socially and internally. Sarcasm has a certain benefit that helps you differentiate between the real and fake in life. You will instantly recognize people with a sense of intelligence and life experiences.
Takeaway
Sarcasm is mean only if you want it to be. It’s a natural sense of humor that comes right when it’s needed. It’s the way of telling others to relax and see the world from a different angle.
Don’t force sarcastic sentences out of your mouth, neither copy other ones’ thoughts. The best sarcasm happens when no one but your own brain is involved. Only this way sarcasm increases your social awareness and brain activity.
You can gain a lot of value if you include jokes of this kind in your day-to-day life. The ones who use sarcasm can get over social exclusion and themselves. They don’t ruminate on insignificant issues but rather turn them into something more purposeful. They have fun, create inspiration, and offer a new perspective for others to taste.
It is important to see the bigger picture. The beautiful part of wittiness.
But never forget to respect other people’s boundaries. Sarcasm is very sharp and intense humor, and its presence can be redundant on certain occasions. So use it freely but with respect.
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