The Study of Sarcasm in Political Discourse

Abstract

Sarcasm is a complicated linguistic phenomenon especially in written language because changing the tone of speech makes sarcasm more apparent. Sarcasm often refers to a specific, recognizable individual and it implies criticism. Incongruity is the main characteristic that sarcastic speech contains in addition to opposition and negativity. Everyday interaction usually includes sarcasm, which affects the nature of nearly every exchange. As a result, sarcasm offers a chance for in-depth linguistic research. In this study, the researcher sets the following aims: showing which types of speech acts are used more than other types in the political contexts; shedding a light on the social functions that sarcasm serves in the political texts; and knowing the linguistic mechanisms which are employed in the political texts to reflect sarcasm. Accordingly, some hypotheses are put which are as follows: expressives are used more than other types of speech acts in the political texts; social control is the main function that sarcasm serves in the political texts; and metaphor is used frequently in political texts as a mechanism to reflect sarcasm. The researcher adopts an eclectic model which consists of three theories: Searle and Vanderveken's Speech Acts Theory (1985); Ducharme's Functions of Sarcasm (1994); and Tabacaru's Linguistic Mechanisms of Sarcasm. The analysis of the chosen political texts shows the following conclusions: assertive speech acts are used more than other types of speech acts; humorous aggression is a very common function of sarcasm in the employed political texts; and the most utilized linguistic mechanism to express sarcasm is metaphor.