Years of watching Monty Python and an absurdist point of view has honed my skills at the "art" of mockery. It comes so naturally to me that if I don't think about what I am going to say, it will be something sarcastic. Not everyone is appreciative of this skill. In fact, there are many who have found my sense of humor to be off-putting. On the flip side, there are also those who know exactly where I am coming from. Since preaching to the choir is a waste of time, I'd like to unpack why, exactly, sarcasm and mockery are so upsetting to some people.
While thinking about this topic the other day, it dawned on me that sarcasm gets a bad rap not because people don't "understand" it nor even that they don't ever employ it themselves against others, but that it reminds them of the finitude of this existence. Mockery is upsetting because it reminds the target that they've taken a topic or identity too seriously, have become too attached to some notion of being. Think about a time you mocked someone - was it because they were so into whatever they were doing that they were being defined by it? That they had become a parody of themselves? Were they treating others like shit because they were so wrapped up in whatever identity they had created in their minds? This is why hipsters are such easy targets - every aspect of their being is defined by their own hand. There is no authenticity to an existence like that. A completely constructed image or ego is a drag to be around.
Look at me now, blogging about shit like I know what I am talking about - mock me, PLEASE! I am clearly asking for it.
Sure, sarcasm can become bullying, especially if it's unwarranted, but used to lighten a mood or to effect change (satire) or to knock someone out of their all-encompassing vision, there's nothing wrong about it.
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