Sarcasm comes from a Greek word meaning ‘to tear the flesh with one’s teeth’. Irony relies on those with insight realising that what is said is the opposite of what is meant. Mr Bennet in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice frequently makes ironical remarks which only his more perceptive listeners will understand. When he tells one of his less musical daughters that she has delighted the company with her piano playing for long enough, she takes his remarks at face value. Jane and Elizabeth, two of her sisters, know exactly what he really meant. Sarcasm sometimes uses this technique.
