Cook, A. L. (2007). Narratives of Irony: Alienation, Representation, and Ethics in Carlyle, Eliot, and Pater. A Dissertation at University of Pittsburgh. [Online]. Retrieved at: www.d-scholarship.pitt.edu [August 15th 2011].…
Eavan Boland's poem "The Necessity for Irony" begins in narrative tone, when on a unremarkable Sunday Eavan, with her daughter, go browsing for antiques in town. However, by the end of the poem, Eavan's tone is lyrical, as she sends an apostrophe to the "spirit of irony," asking it to "reproach" her for focusing on antiques rather than what was truly beautiful, her child. Her dramatic shift in tone is slow and accomplished using various techniques.…
Dramatic irony is a literary technique that occurs when an event happens in the story that the audience understands, but the story’s characters cannot grasp. William Shakespeare uses this device throughout a numerous amount of his plays, whether it be a comedy or tragedy. This particular element, in Shakespearian tragedies, is used in order to add a tragic element of not knowing to the story. It is also used to engage the audience and to help reveal the tragic flaw that evidently leads to the hero's downfall. In Shakespeare’s tragedy Hamlet, dramatic irony is a key piece to the stories unveiling of the major plot. It occurs many times throughout the play and all have an essential purpose.…
The novel Ethan From by Edith Wharton tells the story of Ethan From and the tragedy he faces in his life. The story mainly focuses on the relationships between and among Ethan, his wife, and his wife’s cousin, with whom he is in love. Wharton uses different literary devices to develop the plot, including irony as one of the most effective. The use of irony in the novel, especially in the climatic sledding scene, greatly adds to the development of the tragedy.…
All through the semester, read a numerous amount of short stories, ranging from Tarzan of the apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs to Spunk by Zora Neale Hurston. Each story includes their own twists and turns. Out of all the stories, I choose to write about The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allen Poe.…
Many factors contribute to the tragic end to one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays. Shakespeare uses dramatic irony to detail the plotline of the story to the audience, as well as the indiscretion of Romeo’s decision to kill himself due to his oblivion that Juliet was actually alive in the tomb. Shakespeare also uses the literary device of chance versus choice to portray the reckless decisions made by both Romeo and Juliet when they are faced with situations that they could not control, or “chance”. Finally, Shakespeare employs multiple antagonists in the play to influence their decisions to both run away and kill themselves because they knew their love will never be accepted in Verona. Throughout the play, Shakespeare uses various literary…
Stories can teach you many important subjects in life that can lead you forward into the life story you are creating. Courage is something a lot of us have but we have it hidden inside us only to use when we need to the most. In addition to courage comes irony one of the flaws life has in store for people who act always on their words. Furthermore comes hypocrisy when someone claims something is wrong, but does it themselves formerly leading to that person to lose respect from others. Provided that the book of Esther captures over all many meaningful and important lessons can be learned from other's actions in a story.…
Life is full of irony. Everywhere you look there are situations that contrast what is expected. Evidently, many of my interests turned out to be ironic twists. I love concerts, experiencing live music with friends is one of the best things in life. Seeing my favorite band play right before my eyes is a site like no other, well if I could see it. Concerts are great –for tall people. But for the “vertically challenged” it gets a little difficult. I either see heads before my eyes or suffer through heels the whole night. It’s ironic that my love for concerts is counteracted by me being 5”1’. Since I’m aware that I’m almost done growing I come to terms with just hearing the sensational music. What this taught me was to stop going on my tip toes and just enjoy the rhythm.…
• The audience knows the truth about Old Hamlet`s death, however, all of the characters in the play, apart from Hamlet, believe that Old Hamlet`s death was a tragic accident.…
Irony is a contrast between what is stated and what is meant, or between what is expected to happen and what actually happens. The Crucible is a play by the American playwright Arthur Miller, and is filled with examples of irony throughout the play to build suspense and create anxiety. Arthur Miller used three kinds of irony, and they are dramatic, situational, and verbal irony. The Crucible is filled with many examples for each kind of irony through the play.…
In “The Cask of Amontillado”, Edgar Allan Poe uses irony to develop the central idea of revenge. He uses irony in naming the character of Fortunato. Fortunato’s name means “fortune”. He is a man of wealth who is being blindly led to his death by Montresor in search of justifiable revenge. Poe also uses irony in the dialogue, “My dear Fortunato, you are luckily met. How remarkably well you are looking today”. Montresor is pleased to see him. Although Fortunato looks good now, he will be dead by the end of the story when Montresor puts his plan into action. Later, Montresor is concerned about his coughing. Montresor said, “We will go back. Your health is precious. You are rich, respected, admired, beloved..”. Montresor tells him to go back because…
The short story, “The Cask of Amontillado” written by Edgar Allen Poe is about a psychotic man named Montresor who seeks revenge against Fortunato, a man who allegedly committed malice towards him. Poe utilizes verbal irony to establish the story’s events and to create a humorous yet subtle way to show the misfortunes of Fortunato which eventually leads up to his death. For example, “Enough, he said; the cough is a mere nothing; it will not kill me. I shall not die of a cough” (Poe 241). Fortunato is correct because the cough does not kill him, however his death occurs later in the story because of a totally different reason. This conversation contributes to the story’s mood by adding a bit of humor since readers already know from the beginning…
Most readers remember Edgar Allan Poe for his vivid use of situational irony. In the short story Cask of Amontillado, Poe employs this technique by introducing us to the narrator, Montresor. He explains that he told his servants that he would “not return until the morning” and had given them “explicit orders” to remain in the home in his absence. He makes this clear when he says, “I had told them that I should not return until the morning, and had given them explicit orders not to stir from the house.” For this reason, he knows that they would not be there and his house would be empty when he returned with Fortunato. One would expect servants to listen to their master’s order, especially when it is given so explicitly, but their behavior defies…
In his poem “Ozymandias,” Percy Shelley employs symbolism and irony and to convey his message that power over society is fleeting and every attempt at everlasting fame will deteriorate and become meaningless. Shelley’s use of symbolism emphasizes the ineffectiveness of an arrogant ruler’s attempts to create an eternal authority over society. For example, the traveler in the poem chronicles the “two vast and trunkless legs of stone/Standing in the desert" (2-3). A massive pair of crippled stone legs immediately comes to one’s mind, indicating that a once striking, impressive statue is now damaged and almost worthless without its remaining head and torso. These “trunkless” yet enormous legs epitomize Ozymandias's grandiose ego and inflated…
Irony is the general name given to literary techniques that involve surprising, interesting, or amusing contradictions. Two stories from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales that serve as excellent demonstrations of irony are "The Pardoners Tale" and "The Nun's Priest's Tale." Although these two stories are very different, they both use irony to teach a lesson.…