Like Amanda, I’ve been pondering Shira’s posts about comedy and sarcasm. I’ve been trying to figure out what makes something sarcastic successful, did some googling, and found a gem of a site called Sarcasm Socitey. Among the many things to laugh and giggle at (and learn from) on the site is a list of sarcastic quotes from brilliant minds. (Told you I’m a sucker for quotes.) One of my favorites is from George Bernard Shaw:

The trouble with her is that she lacks the power of conversation but not the power of speech.

One of the reasons I find this so funny is because many people would apply that quote to me. I’m a prattler; I talk all the time and about anything and nothing. (Even in graduate school a teacher told me to wait for five other people to speak in class before I opened my mouth again.)

So, the conclusion I’ve come to is that the best sarcasm is one that is inclusive of the person laughing at the joke. Even though stand up comedians who tell jokes at other’s expenses can be funny, the really, really funny ones are the ones who laugh at themselves or laugh at us–”us” as in the society we are all apart of.

And to connect sarcasm and writing: my friend Virginia told me about a sarcastic and very funny blog about the publishing world called SlushPile Hell: One grumpy literary agent, a sea of query fails, and other publishing nonsense. Although it seems like all the jokes are at the expense of the writers who send in inept query letters and therefore not within the definition of successful sarcasm I just gave you–I still find them funny. Maybe because it makes me feel better that other people write more idiotic queries than me (I can be petty sometimes), but also because the contests this blog runs through Twitter get hilarious and brilliantly smart entries.

What do you think are the necessary ingredients in successful sarcasm?