sarcasm: (from the Greek, "to tear the flesh") sarcasm involves bitter, caustic language that is meant to hurt or ridicule someone or something. It may use irony as a device, but not all ironic statements are sarcastic, that is, intending to ridicule. When well done, sarcasm can be witty and insightful; when poorly done, it is simply cruel.
The sarcasm in this photograph lies in the juxtaposing of the poor farmers and the sign, encouraging decadence and offering "easy times." The photographer is communicating the sharp separation between classes, and how the Dust Bowl and Great Depression affected farmers. He, or she, wants the viewer to know the reality, and through this picture, probably that no one would have been able to afford the train, as the road is empty except for the pedestrians, and that the signs were pointless and in a way cruel to those who were living, at times, hour to hour. The hope was most likely to give insight into the world of the "common man" during the Great Depression by sarcastically pointing out the plight of the American.
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