The Expression of Sarcasm in the "Odyssey"

• Published in: Mnemosyne Vol. 63; no. 4; pp. 533 - 556
• Main Author: Minchin, Elizabeth
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Leiden Brill 01.01.2010; Brill Academic Publishers, Inc
• Subjects: Discourse; Epic literature; Homeric epics; Insults; Irony; Jokes; Literary criticism; Palaces; Poetry; Politeness; Rhetoric; Taunting; Verbs

I begin with a survey of relevant literature on sarcastic talk as it occurs in the anglophone world today. Having developed a 'view' of sarcasm in this contemporary world, I turn to the expression of sarcasm in Homer. My examination of the spoken exchanges in the second half of the Odyssey...