I'm really starting to like Mark Twain ^
-Stoic Joker
If you like him, check out Ambrose Bierce and his
Devil's Dictionary.
A few examples:
FREEDOM, n. Exemption from the stress of authority in a beggarly half dozen of restraint's infinite multitude of methods. A political condition that every nation supposes itself to enjoy in virtual monopoly. Liberty. The distinction between freedom and liberty is not accurately known; naturalists have never been able to find a living specimen of either.
FRIENDLESS, adj. Having no favors to bestow. Destitute of fortune. Addicted to utterance of truth and common sense.
GENEROUS, adj. Originally this word meant noble by birth and was rightly applied to a great multitude of persons. It now means noble by nature and is taking a bit of a rest.
HAPPINESS, n. An agreeable sensation arising from contemplating the misery of another.
HASH, x. There is no definition for this word—nobody knows what hash is.
HIPPOGRIFF, n. An animal (now extinct) which was half horse and half griffin. The griffin was itself a compound creature, half lion and half eagle. The hippogriff was actually, therefore, a one-quarter eagle, which is two dollars and fifty cents in gold. The study of zoology is full of surprises.
HYPOCRITE, n. One who, professing virtues that he does not respect secures the advantage of seeming to be what he despises.
IGNORAMUS, n. A person unacquainted with certain kinds of knowledge familiar to yourself, and having certain other kinds that you know nothing about.
IMPUNITY, n. Wealth.
JUSTICE, n. A commodity which is a more or less adulterated condition the State sells to the citizen as a reward for his allegiance, taxes and personal service.
IMPARTIAL, adj. Unable to perceive any promise of personal advantage from espousing either side of a controversy or adopting either of two conflicting opinions.
LIBERTY, n. One of Imagination's most precious possessions.
ALLIANCE, n. In international politics, the union of two thieves who have their hands so deeply inserted in each other's pockets that they cannot separately plunder a third.
Awesome stuff. First appearing in bits and pieces around 1887, and in complete book form in 1906, it's amazing how spot-on so much of it remains.
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Note:
Bierce is also numbered among the finest of early horror and macabre fiction writers, taking his place with the likes of Arthur Machen and H.P. Lovecraft. A good deal of Ambrose Bierce can be found on Project Gutenberg. Author page is
here.