Irony: What is it?
"Any definition of irony--though hundreds might be given, and very few of them would be accepted--must include this, that the surface meaning and the underlying meaning of what is said are not the same." -Henry Watson Fowler
Irony is defined as: : the use of words or situations that are the opposite of what you really think especially in order to be funny
: a situation that is strange or funny because things happen in a way that seems to be the opposite of what you expected
A simple way of putting it is that irony usually signals a difference between the way things appear to be and reality. ________________________________________________________________
#1 VERBAL IRONY
Verbal Irony is when a writer or speaker says one thing but really means something completely different. Sarcasm is a form of verbal irony.
Listen to these examples of verbal irony:
Irony is defined as: : the use of words or situations that are the opposite of what you really think especially in order to be funny
: a situation that is strange or funny because things happen in a way that seems to be the opposite of what you expected
A simple way of putting it is that irony usually signals a difference between the way things appear to be and reality. ________________________________________________________________
#1 VERBAL IRONY
Verbal Irony is when a writer or speaker says one thing but really means something completely different. Sarcasm is a form of verbal irony.
Listen to these examples of verbal irony:
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#2 DRAMATIC IRONY
Dramatic Irony is when the reader is aware of something important that the character(s) are unaware of.
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#3 SITUATIONAL IRONY
Situational Irony occurs when the character and/or the reader expects one thing to happen, but something entirely different happens instead.
#3 SITUATIONAL IRONY
Situational Irony occurs when the character and/or the reader expects one thing to happen, but something entirely different happens instead.
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Can you find the irony in each of the following?
Can you find the irony in each of the following?
http://www.ltisdschools.org/cms/lib/TX21000349/Centricity/Domain/177/ironyandhypocrisy%201112.pdf