Yes, but sometimes it is a Pyrrhic victory. Most of us, says UW-Milwaukee's Roy, tread carefully around masochistic jokesters. We're afraid we'll be a victim. It's hard to argue with a very witty person. They can win with one remark, especially if there's an audience.
Experts agree it is extremely difficult to deflect or reverse an artful insult.
We all have had midnight moments when we're chewing over what we could have said and should have said, Carlsson noted. In some cases, those hours-later musings might be the catharsis that gets the victim over his or her embarrassment, Bradford said. Laughing it off, Shuter says, is what most of us do in these scenarios. Other responses, Bradford said, include launching a verbal or physical counter-attack, assigning blame elsewhere, finding a scapegoat, making excuses or justifications, apologizing, making your escape by walking away . . . None of which sounds particularly appealing, she conceded.