Do Americans "not get sarcasm"?
- Thread starter Booze Zombie
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Its just that sarcasm cant be read through type unless you make it painfully obvious, losing the point. Its hard to read sarcasm, and then throw in the trolls, who stay stupid/ignorant things on a daily basis just to get people angry, and most people just have trouble telling if its sarcasm, trolling, or idiocy. Its not our fault as americans, because et me say, that in real life we are usually all quite sarcastic. Im just going ot take trolls as a more american thing, and say that it makes us a bit mre confused than others.
Sarcasm is a lost art over the pond, along with subtlety, common sense and good humour. Well, not exactly; some American comedians are funny, but mostly American humour (or 'humor', which sounds like a disease) is not. Canadians, though... god, Canadians are great 
I wouldn't say they don't all get it, but I'd say that they're more likely to take what you've said literally.
To be fair, if you're going to be sarcastic in a piece of writing it takes a lot more skill to have it read as sarcasm, as opposed to being face-to-face with someone. Which is partly why I can't tell if this is a joke:
To be fair, if you're going to be sarcastic in a piece of writing it takes a lot more skill to have it read as sarcasm, as opposed to being face-to-face with someone. Which is partly why I can't tell if this is a joke:
But I hear that people do actually pay to see Dane Cook live; if that's not an indication of a lack of subtlety, I don't know what is.SuperMse said:
This.Canadian Briton said:
Never use sarcasm on the internet unless of course you explain your sarcasm with a [/sarcasm]. This isn't just an American condition... it's a HUMAN condition. We are not all psychic and can't tell that your making the funnyz. Make your joke clear that it's a joke or don't make it at all.
Yes.Booze Zombie said:
Part joke, part serious. It was my first response mentally when I saw the thread, but then I realized that it fit perfectly, given that it actually is sarcastic, given that I am thanking the OP for something that I do not like.Woodsey said:
Americans understand sarcasm just fine. As a lot of people have said, it just doesn't translate well to text.
I think the reason that a couple of people got defensive over this and assumed that it was intended to be an "America Bashing" thread was because we catch a lot of flak. The entire world hears the word American and instantly assumes that the person in question is an idiot. Since we are so used to defending our IQ based on where we were born, we might jump to arms a little quickly.
Last, whats with people throwing the southern states into the line of fire? Now, I might talk a little slow, but that's just the accent I grew up around. I promise I'm just as capable of understanding sarcasm as anyone else, and so is everyone else around here.
I think the reason that a couple of people got defensive over this and assumed that it was intended to be an "America Bashing" thread was because we catch a lot of flak. The entire world hears the word American and instantly assumes that the person in question is an idiot. Since we are so used to defending our IQ based on where we were born, we might jump to arms a little quickly.
Last, whats with people throwing the southern states into the line of fire? Now, I might talk a little slow, but that's just the accent I grew up around. I promise I'm just as capable of understanding sarcasm as anyone else, and so is everyone else around here.
Blame bush, he was all that the world saw of Texas and the American south for 8 years. Personally i like the southern accent best of all, but when you have a notoriously bad public speaker representing your part of the world for the better part of a decade the southern stereotpye is going to be adjusted because of it.Kingstome said:
Sarcasm is defined as using ironic wit to deride. However "talking ironically" isn't correct English, so you were right.Mutie said:
This thread reminds me of something that happened a while back. One of the crappy tabloids here had been running what was almost a smear campaign against this American celebrity(some guy who divorced some woman, don't remember who) for some reason. So the American guy sued them for harassment and libel and forced them to print an apology. They printed the apology next to an article about how Americans don't get sarcasm.
No Americans get sarcasm. Now irony, they don't get. So they end up being unintentionally ironically 'ironic'.Booze Zombie said:
What people don't get when they are trying to be sarcastic on the internet is that sarcasm is all about how you pronounce it.
Not how they type it or the words.
Not how they type it or the words.