Sardonism

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In contrast to sarcasm, sardonism does not mean biting, bitter ridicule , but rather grim, painful one. This is often associated with an eerie, sinister laugh , the sardonic laugh .

origin

Sardonic laughter of a mask (ancient mask from Sardinia )

The expression was already known in ancient Greece, mostly as Sardonic Laughter , Σαρδάνιος γέλως Sardanios gelos or later Σαρδόνιος γέλως Sardonios gelos . One difference between Cynic ( Kynikos: , belonging to the world view of Kyniker '), sarcasm ( sarkastikós: , mocking ridicule, infringing speech') and sardonisch ( σαρδάνιος sardanios : the grim jeers an angry, at its own damage or private pain ').

Odysseus, disguised as a beggar, laughs sardonically to himself at Homer when, finally back, he evades a cow's foot that a suitor is throwing at his wife:

ὣς εἰπὼν ἔρριψε βοὸς πόδα χειρὶ παχείῃ,
κείμενον ἐκ κανέοιο λαβών · ὁ δ 'ἀλεύατ' Ὀδυσσεὺς
ἦκα παρακλίνας κεφαλήν, .DELTA..di-elect cons θυμῷ μείδησε
σαρδάνιον μάλα τοῖον · ὁ δ 'εὔδμητον βάλε τοῖχον.

So he spoke (*) and threw the cow's foot,
which was in the basket, at Odysseus with an annoying right hand . But Odysseus
swiftly turned his head and with a terrible smile concealed
his anger; and the leg hit the delicate wall.

(Translation by Johann Heinrich Voss )

(*) the free Ktesippos

Gustav Schwab translates this passage as follows: "with a terrible smile". Literally means σαρδάνιον μάλα τοῖον sardanion mala toion "really very sardonic". This is the first evidence of sardánios . Pape leads this word back to σαίρω sairo (" bar your teeth, grin, laugh").

The expression has appeared in German-language works since the 16th century:

"... with aim naughty and sardonic glächter (as they say) ... Ain sardonic glächter would be used in aim proverb for ain alleged mockery and vast bitters of laughter."

- Juan Luis Vives : De officio mariti (German translation by Christophorus Bruno)

"They laughed a sardonic laughter."

- Plutarch : Bíoi parálleloi (German translation by Wilhelm Xylander and Jonas Löchinger)

The origin of the word is unclear: on the one hand, the ancient Sardinians ( Latin Sardoni or Sardi ) are said to have had the custom of killing the old people; it should be laughed at. That was the notorious risus Sardonicus , a convulsive laugh in which the soul is not involved. On the other hand, the spasmodic smile will occasionally the effect of a bitter plant σαρδάνιον sardánion (depending on the source and Apium risus or, for example, in yellowing , Sardoa herba , German also Lach herb ) from Sardinia returned to the poison Oenanthotoxin to contain and thus the tradition of the Killing the ancients would explain. Meyer's encyclopedia from 1888 writes about it:

“ Sardonic laughter (Sardonius risus, Sardoniasis), convulsive laughter associated with violently changing facial distortions without any external cause. The expression can already be found in Homer (Odyssey, 20, 302) and is said to have been taken from a herb growing in Sardinia (in Vergil Sardoa herba), the enjoyment of which makes the mouth laugh. More generally, it also means forced or scornful laughter. "

More recent works also relate the origin of convulsive laughter to the Sardonia plant . The real plant behind the mythical herb was often identified as the tubular water fennel ( botanical Oenanthe fistulosa ), but its parts of the plant taste extremely bitter. Already in the 18th century Albrecht von Haller was of the opinion that the herb must be the saffron vine umbel (botanical Oenanthe crocata ) that only occurs in Sardinia . In a 2009 study, a group led by Giovanni Appendino came to the same view as Haller:

“Unlike other plant toxins, the convulsant polyacetylenes from water dropwort and related plant do not evoke unpleasant taste (bitter) or chemesthetic (burning) sensations, and the roots of O. crocata, an exceedingly poisonous plant, have a paradoxical sweetish and pleasant taste and odor. The large concentration of falcarindiol, a bitter compound, and the lower contents of polyacetylene toxins in O. fistulosa when compared to O. crocata could presumably underlie the observation that the former species has not yet been associated with human or animal poisoning. The name Oenanthe signifies 'wine flower', because the plant produces a state of stupefaction similar to drunkenness. This, as well as locked jaws ( risus sardonicus ), has been documented in human poisoning from O. crocata , and there is little doubt that herba sardonica of the ancient medical literature should be identified with O. crocata , a plant that, within the Mediterranean area, is common only in Sardinia. The results of our investigation provide a further rationale for this identification, proposing a molecular mechanism for the risus sardonicus described by the ancient authors. ”

“In contrast to other plant poisons, the convulsive polyacetylenes from saffron vine umbels and related plants do not cause any unpleasant taste (bitter) or chemaesthetic (burning) sensations, and the roots of O. crocata , an extremely poisonous plant, have a paradoxically sweet and pleasant feel Taste and smell. The high concentration of falcarindiol, a bitter-tasting compound, and the lower content of polyacetylene toxins in O. fistulosa compared to O. crocata could presumably be the basis for the observation that the former species has not yet been associated with human or animal poisoning . The name Oenanthe means 'wine flower' because the plant produces a state of drowsiness similar to drunkenness. This, as well as the cramped jaw muscles ( risus sardonicus ) in human poisoning by O. crocata, has been documented, and there is little doubt that the Herba sardonica of the ancient medical literature should be identified with O. crocata , a plant native to the Mediterranean is only common in Sardinia. The results of our investigation provide further justification for this identification and suggest a molecular mechanism for the Risus sardonicus described by the ancient authors . "

- Giovanni Appendino et al.

As risus sardonicus a symptom is called today, that at a tetanus disease infection ( "lockjaw") and poisoning with strychnine occurs.

Web links

Wiktionary: Sardonism  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Brockhaus  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.brockhaus.de  
  2. ^ A b Wilhelm Pape : Greek-German dictionary . Braunschweig 1849. Documentation a. a. in Homer, Plato, Polybios, Meleager and Sophocles. Online: Keyword σαρδάνιος ( sardanios ), Zeno.org .
  3. ↑ Homer, Odyssey 20,302; Verses 299-302 Greek and German quoted from Navicula Bacchi , Homer: Odyssey 20. The events before the suicide (original Greek text and German translation)
  4. ↑ Schwab - Sagen: Der Festschmaus - Odysseus (Textlog.de)
  5. ↑ Juan Luis Vives : De officio mariti , German translation by Christophorus Bruno: From Fee-based Thun and let a Christian husband , Augsburg 1544, fol. 12b, in the text and in the margin. ( Online view in Google Book Search). Frankfurt am Main 1566, fol. 10b, in the text and in the margin. ( Online view in Google Book Search)
  6. ↑ Plutarch , German translation by Wilhelm Xylander and Jonas Löchinger: From the most splendid, praiseworthy, most famous histories, life ... of the most splendid men, as founded by the Romans and Greeks , Frankfurt am Main 1580, fol. 211b. ( Online view in Google Book Search); W. de Porta: Illustr. German monthly booklet. 3rd episode. Volume 5, 1875, p. 593 f; Büchmann, Winged Words 1912, p. 328; Friedrich Kluge: Etymological dictionary . Berlin 1963, p. 625.
  7. ^ Karl Friedrich Wilhelm Wander : German Sprichwort Lexikon. Brockhaus, Leipzig 1867, sv laughter
  8. ↑ The secret of sardonic laughter. in: epoc . Issue 5. Spectrum, Heidelberg 2009, p. 9. ISSN  1865-5718
  9. ^ Sardonic laughter . In: Meyers Konversations-Lexikon . 4th edition. Volume 14, Verlag des Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig / Vienna 1885–1892, p. 328 .; Lemma marked in bold in the original.
  10. ↑ dtv lexicon. Volume 16, Munich 1977, ISBN 3-423-03066-6 .
  11. ^ Heinrich Gottfried von Mattuschka : Flora Silesiaca, or directory of the plants growing wild in Silesia . First part. Leipzig 1776, p. 520 ( online view in the Google book search): "... although Herr von Haller is of the opinion that the Oenanthe crocata is the true Herba Sardoa of the ancients."
  12. ^ Professor of Organic Chemistry in the Pharmaceutical Faculty of the Università del Piemonte Orientale : Docenti - Dipartimento di Scienze del Farmaco → Giovanni Battista Appendino
  13. ^ Giovanni Appendino, Federica Pollastro, Luisella Verotta, Mauro Ballero, Adriana Romano, Paulina Wyrembek, Katarzyna Szczuraszek, Jerzy W. Mozrzymas, Orazio Taglialatela-Scafati: Polyacetylenes from Sardinian Oenanthe fistulosa : A Molecular Clue to risus sardonicus . In: Journal of Natural Products . tape 72 , no. 5 , 2009, p. 962-965 , doi : 10.1021 / np8007717 , PMID 19245244 , PMC 2685611 (free full text).