I leaned toward our guide and said sarcastically, “Wow, nice roads.” Our translator sat silent. “Aren’t you going to translate what I said?” I asked. “I can’t,” he said. “Why not?” “Because what you said was sarcastic, and the African people do not understand sarcasm. If I tell him you said the roads are nice, he will believe you. If I tell him you don’t like the roads, it sounds critical.” “They don’t ever speak sarcastically?” I asked. “No, they don’t have a word for sarcasm. They have no understanding of saying something and meaning its opposite,” he said. “To them you say only what you
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