Sarcasm: Good or Bad?

Hi guys! Today I want to discuss sarcasm and why it is good or bad for some people (mostly me). Rasanya sepanjang hidup 33 tahun ni, I've surrounded myself with pretty sarcastic people from my family, friends, and colleagues to the point that I use sarcasm to communicate with others. Tapi bukan sebarang orang lah eh I nak be sarcastic with. Bila salah crowd nanti ada yang sentap pulak. Do be aware of your audience as well okay?

So what is sarcasm? What does being sarcastic mean? Sarcastic people tend to use the opposite words of what they want to say. But it is not merely just words, it is how you say it. The tone needs to be correct for it to be sarcastic and for the pros, it usually comes with the right combination of body language and facial expressions as well. Kalau korang ingat zaman-zaman "Tangan dibahu, Mata keatas" tu? Itu lah salah satu contoh kombinasi sarcastic words, body language and facial expression.

Sarcastic people for me are fun to be around because most of the time they will check you and put you in your place. Untuk orang yang kinda delulu like me, I appreciate a little reality check like whenever I feel like "Oh cantiknya aku harini" and someone comes up to me and say things like "Ya Faiz, kau lah yang terpalinggggggggg cantik sekali". With that tone? Girl, I know I might have overstepped certain boundaries and I need to take a seat. Jujur cakap, I feel like that is way better than people telling me that "Kau buruk, sila duduk".

Back to the question of whether is sarcasm good or bad. For me personally, I suka lah orang yang sarcastic because they are telling the truth and the truth is easier to swallow for me when it is being told sarcastically. Dia macam berlapik sikit lah kan. But can it be bad?

Of course! Dalam dunia ni tak ada benda yang baik-baik je dik, mesti ada yang tak baik juga. So how can it be bad? Sarcasm ni is not for orang yang tak ada self-awareness. Meaning dorang ni adalah orang-orang yang too into themselves or sangat-sangat lurus. So being sarcastic with these people will only worsen the situation. Contoh is when you're telling a narcissist yang dorang adalah yang terpaling cantik sekali, for sure they will agree and continue being the narcissist that they are. Is the problem solved? No! Makin menjadi-jadi adalah orang-orang ni kan. Kau pulak penat nak melayan dia punya feeling lepas tu.

That is not all, even for me pun I feel like too much sarcasm can hurt a communication juga. Why did I say so? Sebab now I can't tell the difference between genuine compliments and sarcasm. To be honest, I have the worst response when receiving a compliment to the point that I feel like I'm being rude to those who puji I. The most recent incident was a few weeks back when some of my colleagues said that I looked young for my age and that I have nice skin (ni kisah benar eh bukan rekaan). I just laughed and said "tak baik menganjing" instead of saying thank you. Immediately after that, I macam "damn that was rude of me to not appreciate people saying nice things about me". So yeah, too much sarcasm is kinda bad too I guess? Sebab dah susah nak beza mana betul mana sarcastic kan?

What is your take on sarcasm? Do you like it or do hate it? Why? What are your experiences with sarcasm or sarcastic people? Do share.