What's the difference between irony and sarcasm?

What's the difference between irony and sarcasm?

Quite often sarcasm is mistaken for irony; however, sarcasm is a form of irony which uses sharp wit to highlight the obviousness, stupidity, or annoyance-factor of a situation. One main difference between irony and sarcasm is that irony is generally observed and sarcasm is generally created (i.e. spoken, written). People don't usually go about actively pursuing the creation of irony.

Sarcasm

Sarcasm:

A form of verbal irony expressing sneering, personal disaproval in the guise of praise of a person, situation or thing.

Sarcasm, is irony but with a bitter and offensive tone.

Examples:

1.- He is a perfect Salomon.

2.- Wow...your really amazing

3.- Oh that was clever. (When a person made a mistake).

4.-It is possible for your mind to be so open that your brain falls out.

5.- I refuse to engage in an intellectual battle with an unarmed man.

Verbal Irony and Situational Irony

2.- Verbal Irony: A contradiction of expectation between what is said and what is meant.

Verbal irony is a disparity of expression and intention: when a speaker says one thing but means another, or when a literal meaning is contrary to its intended effect. An example of this is sarcasm.

Example: When the speaker says: "I appreciate your help". When no help was provided to the speaker. (sarcastic comment).

3.- Situational Irony: Occurs when the results of a situation are far different, from what was expected. The difference between what is expected to happen and what actually occurs.

Example:

You wash your car and then it rains

Types of Irony

Types of Irony

There are many different types of irony including dramatic,verbal,situational and socratic.

Dramatic Irony: A situation in which the audience knows something about present of future circunstances that the character does not know.

Examples of Dramatic Irony in Literature
Dramatic irony occurs in situations where the audience knows something about present or future circumstances that the character does not know. Literature with Dramatic Irony examples can be found in the most famous plays by William Shakespeare.

• Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. When Romeo finds Juliet in a drugged sleep, he assumes her to be dead and kills himself. Upon awakening to find her dead lover beside her, Juliet then kills herself.
• Oedipus Rex by Sophocles in which Oedipus searches to find the murderer of the former king of Thebes, only to discover that it is himself, which is known to the audience all along.
• Othello by William Shakespeare. In which Othello blames Desdemona for cuckolding him but the audience knows that he is being deceived by Iago.
• Macbeth by William Shakespeare. Macbeth plans the murder of Duncan whilst feigning loyalty. Duncan does not know of Macbeth’s plans but the audience does.
• The Tempest by William Shakespeare - Miranda does not know that Gonzalo is on the island but her father Prospero, and the audience, does.

(http://www.examples-help.org.uk/dramatic-irony.htm)

Irony or Sarcasm

Irony Or Sarcasm:

These two words are basically the same. They imply saying the opposite of what we really mean.

Irony:Is a figure of speech in which an expression means something the opposite of or very contrary to its literal meaning.

In other words irony is when we say or write conveys the opposite of its literal meaning.

Examples:

1.- "Nice wether" when it is raining.

2.-You win the lotto and then you die of a heart attack.

3.Taking money from the poor and giving it to the rich.

4.-You wash your car and then it rains.