Irony: Examples & Definitions
Father Henry Carr - Ms. Lofranco - ENG 2P1
Irony ≠ Bad Luck!
The 1995 pop song by singer Alanis Morissette, "Ironic", presents a number of bad-luck situations, from "rain on your wedding day" to finding an ideal mate and learning he or she is already married. The problem, though, is that not one of the situations described in the song is actually ironic.
The concept of irony and what makes a situation "ironic" is something many people struggle with, mostly because overuse of the term can make its definition unclear. Often confusing irony with bad luck or coincidence, popular culture and media are quick to label things as ironic when sometimes they just aren't.
Sooo..what exactly is irony?
Irony is a literary device that relies on the difference between expectation and outcome.
While no one wants it to rain on their wedding day, a rain-free wedding is not a guarantee for any bride and groom. Bad luck, but not ironic. Same with meeting the "man of your dreams" and finding he's already married. Tough break, but it's been my experience that you can't reasonably expect every dream man you encounter to be available to commit to you forever.
In those examples, there is no actual discrepancy between expectation and outcome. You can, however, reasonably expect a song about ironic situations to contain ironic situations. That all the situations described in "Ironic" are not ironic is, in fact, ironic.
Now that we have a handle on what irony is not, let's explore three different types of irony: verbal, dramatic and situational.
Verbal Irony
Verbal irony is the use of language to express the opposite sentiment than what is expected. The most recognizable form of verbal irony is sarcasm, where the speaker says the opposite of what they mean, often for comedic effect.
Sometimes my dad will serve himself dessert and tell the rest of the family that it is "disgusting" while simultaneously shoveling it in his mouth. He uses sarcasm, saying it is disgusting when he's clearly enjoying it, to get us to laugh.
There are times, though, when verbal irony is less about laughter and more about underscoring how we feel by saying the opposite of what is true. We often say the opposite of how we feel to show disappointment: "It's okay, I didn't want to win a million dollars anyway".
An example of Verbal Irony can be seen in the following clips from the movie "Mean Girls" and the television show "Family Guy":
Dramatic Irony
The following clip is an example of Dramatic Irony from Disney's "The Lion King". Simba mopes around feeling guilty for his father’s death, unaware (as the audience is) that Scar actually killed Mufasa.
Situational Irony
Situational irony is when the exact opposite of what you expect to happen, happens. Situational irony, like verbal irony, is powered by the incongruity between the expectation and the actual outcome.
Cartoons often use situational irony to get laughs. For example, a cat chasing a dog, instead of a dog chasing a cat.
Situational irony can be used to create tragedy, too. As readers, we expect a wife to feel grief when she learns her husband has died in an accident. In "The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin, Louise Mallard feels relief instead of sorrow when she is told her husband has been killed in a train accident. While her husband treated her well, Louise felt confined by marriage, and his death makes her feel free instead of sad. This is the opposite of what we would expect - situational irony.
An example of Situational Irony can be seen in the following clip from the television show, "Mr. Bean":
Time to test your wits!
Are the following examples of verbal irony, dramatic irony, situational irony or are they not ironic at all?
- I failed the test because I didn’t study.
- Batman doesn’t know the Joker is waiting for him, but the audience does.
- The passenger’s airbag killed him when it deployed.
- “Thanks for the ticket, Officer. You just made my day!”
- Dave’s blood pressure medication gave him a heart attack.
On a piece of paper, write down your answers and hand them in to the teacher once you have completed the activity.