Question

Which phrase in this excerpt from Kurt Vonnegut's "Report on the Barnhouse Effect" is an example of sarcasm?

1)the blessings of another world war.

2)his mother lived to be fifty-three, his father to be forty-nine

3), if he can remain hidden from his enemies.

4)typewritten on a soiled scrap of paper

5)bewildering tangle of psychological jargon

Answer 1

1 is the answer. "Blessings" is an ironic, unexpectedly positive judgment of a universally bad situation (a world war). The sarcasm lies in the suggestion that a disastrous, deadly event could be fortunate and a reason to be thankful.

The other answers state facts or describe a situation without judging or expressing emotion.