If I say that sarcasm is one of the most powerful language tools for human beings, your first reaction might be, right? You might also think that I myself am immersed in irony.
After all, we often think of Oscar Wilde's sarcastic remark that "irony is the lowest form of intelligence", forgetting that there is a famous saying that modifies this: "but it is the highest form of wisdom". Parents and teachers of teens may have a hard time believing that this language quirk marks flexibility and creative thinking.
But that's exactly what psychologists and neuroscientists have been arguing about. They found that understanding satire requires countless tests on the part of the brain, which requires more brain power than written expression. While sarcasm is often considered childish sarcasm, it is actually a symbol of maturity — because it takes years for a child's brain to develop to fully understand and master.
Penny Pexman, a psycholinguistic at the University of Calgary, said: "It can be quite challenging. ”
Spiritual effort pays off. Sarcasm allows us to add nuance to our interactions, temper insults, or add a playful mockery to praise. There's even evidence that sarcasm makes us more creative, and it helps us vent negative emotions when we're depressed.
Pecksman was so convinced of the importance of satire that she began designing training programs to help those with an underdeveloped sense of sarcasm.
The complexity of irony comes from the long-term developmental trajectory of childhood. Pecksman discovered this fact with the help of some dolls.
In a typical study, a child saw a man named Jane who was drawing a rose but made a mess. "You're a great painter," said Jane's friend Anne. Or, the child sees a man named Sam weeding the garden and gets the job done quickly. "You're a terrible gardener," said his friend Bob.
In general, children under the age of five simply cannot perceive the irony of these words, and they tend to take them literally. After beginning to realize that these words have hidden other meanings, they may also have a hard time understanding the nuances. (For example, they might think someone is just lying.) Finally, it is necessary to understand that the role of irony in humor is to tease others. Pecksman said: "This ability develops particularly late, averaging around the age of nine or ten. ”
This developmental curve emerges with the advent of "theory of mind," which refers to a child's ability to understand the intentions of others, which matures with age.
Other factors may include vocabulary and grammar, the ability to capture irony from sound cues, and an understanding of the context of irony. This requires a wealth of social experience. Pecksman said: "Children need to put these things together, but they are not enough on their own to understand irony. ”
Her latest research suggests that a child's family environment can greatly influence their understanding and use of satire. If parents use sarcasm, children are more likely to develop this ability on their own.
"Children develop the ability to see things from the perspective of others at about the age of four and to realize that others may have different beliefs in their minds than they do," Pecksman said. "Irony is complicated because children must understand both what the speaker is really thinking and how what they want to say is understood by the other person – two steps that take time to master. (Often, children under the age of seven have a hard time remembering two opposing views in their minds.) ）
By the time they reach their teens, many children have mastered these complex skills. It's perhaps not surprising that they like to experiment with these skills and test their impact on others.
If you still don't believe that children's love of sarcasm is a good thing, take a look at a recent experiment by Ruth Filik, a psychologist at the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom. Participants lay down on a functional magnetic resonance imaging machine and read different scenes of common events.
In some cases, a person's statement is ironic, such as:
Both Bernice and Caitlin are applying to a psychology program at a university in the United States. They went together to print the application form. The printer only has pink paper available. Bernice said to Caitlin, "Too formal! ”
In another case, the same word is used to satirize someone:
Both Bernice and Caitlin are applying to a psychology program at a university in the United States. They went together to print the application form. Caitlin chose to print it on pink paper. Bernice said to Caitlin, "So formal! ”
Both types of satire inspire "mentalized" networks in the mind, related to understanding the beliefs and intentions of others. This finding shows how important the "theory of mind" is in interpreting such ambiguous statements.
Importantly, though, Felice found that, compared to non-satirical counter-talk, satire also triggers semantic networks in the brain that involve general language processing, as well as brain regions involving humor. She sees this as a sign of the overall complexity of humor. "It's even more challenging to figure out what the other person's beliefs are, why they say it, and whether the intention is to be mean or funny."
This mental exercise may have some unexpected benefits. Li Huang, an INSEAD scholar based in Fontainebleau, France, has shown in collaboration with colleagues at Harvard and Columbia that expressing, accepting or recalling satire can help promote creative thinking.
For example, in an experiment about the "candle problem," participants were presented with a candle, a box of matches, and a box of spikes. To find a way to fix the candle to the wall so that the candle can burn without dripping wax onto the floor. The correct thing to do is to empty the box of the pin, nail it to the wall, and put the candle in. This solution is only thought of when you consider the function of each object from the side.
Before setting out to solve the problem, the researchers asked participants to recall a sarcasm, while others recalled a sincere or neutral exchange. Surprisingly, the success rate of satirical memories has more than doubled, from around 30 percent to more than 60 percent.
Sarcasm is a form of humor that can help us deal with frustration or stress. "It's a way to vent stress," said Kathrin Rothermich of East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina. Interestingly, a recent study of hers found that during the coronavirus pandemic, people with depression and anxiety used sarcastic phrases more often — which could be a coping mechanism.
Overall, though, the main motivation for irony is to linguistically add color to the message we want to convey. Pecksman said: "The superficial meaning is veiled, and the underlying meaning is behind it." "If you're implicitly criticizing someone, sarcasm can be a mild tease. It can also give you plausible prevarication to reduce bickering.
While these studies targeted adults, not adolescents, teens feel similar when using sarcastic language, and they'll find that it's an effective way to cope with negative emotions or difficulties.
Parents may be shocked initially when they notice that their child is being sarcastic. This may be more like the cynicism of adults, conflicting with their naïve impressions of children. Parents feel particularly helpless when confronted with a teenager who injects irony into almost all interactions, as if they have lost their sincere emotions.
But should teenagers be blamed for using this all-purpose tool? Maybe it would be better to think of it as a practice of important abilities? "Kids want to be good at this skill, especially when a lot of the language we use in our daily lives is not literal," Felice said. ”
Pecksman agrees. She began to look for ways to teach children who were slow to grasp sarcasm how to make sarcasm. She later published a book, Sydney Gets Sarcastic, which provides several examples of satire and why they are used. In a recent experiment with children aged 5-6, she found that children who read and discussed these stories were more likely to perceive sarcastic statements on subsequent tests.
Given the poor reputation of irony, we can only appreciate its complexity and sophistication. I would say that irony is one of the greatest gifts of language —and I don't mean irony here.