Sarcasm Is More than Humor

 Gino writes, "To either create or understand sarcasm, tone must overcome the contradiction between the literal and actual meanings of the sarcastic expressions. This is a process that activates, and is facilitated by, abstraction, which in turn promotes creative thinking." I have never read such a clear and accessible explanation as to why sarcasm indicates to higher levels of intelligence. Sarcasm, like wit, is fast paced, creative, and above the normal level of brain functioning. To be sarcastic or ironic, one must think one step ahead of their conversationalist to consider the inverse response and gauge the recipient's capability to understand. As Dr. Ellis and Gino indicate, sarcasm and irony walk hand in hand; specifically, irony is creative because it creates the opportunity to juxtapose and intertwine worlds that naturally might not seem coherent. For example, Dr. Ellis explains how Orange "...rubs together past and present, the urban and the land, exemplifying one of the ways to create irony." (Ellis 7) It is not laugh out loud funny, but rather ironic, how Orange uses the disturbing events of Native American history to shed light on the less understood reality of present day Native Americans. Between the words of Gino and Dr. Ellis, I have come to a better understanding of Orange's novel as a necessary inclusion in humour studies. While there is not anything outright funny, Orange's masterful use of irony and sarcasm demonstrates an elevated ability to provide accessibility to a topic of conversation that has been closed off for far too long. Furthermore, as Gino indicates, sarcasm is difficult to convey in writing, so Orange encourages readers to think more creatively while reading his work.