How Is Situational Irony Used In The Scarlet Letter

Another example of irony would be the Story of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. In this story, Adam and Eve have eternal life and God tells them not to eat the fruit from the tree, because it would kill them. The Devil convinces Eve that the fruit could make her and Adam like God, so they consume one of the fruits from the tree. This causes the two to lose their eternal life. The story shows irony in the same way that “Lamb to the Slaughter” does, because the fruit was supposed to give the two life but ended up taking it

Situational irony is when the opposite of what is expected to happen happens. This type of irony can be found in many different works of literature, take The Interlopers and The Machine That Won the War for example. The Interlopers and The Machine that Won the War differ in many ways, like in characters and setting, but use situational irony in a similar way.

Born in Salem, Massachusetts in 1804, Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote many novels and short stories. Hawthorne’s best novel, The Scarlet Letter, overtook the role of the first truly, American novel. His use of rhetorical devices, especially symbolism, established him as one of the most studied authors of all time. In order to convey meaning or to persuade, Hawthorne utilized numerous rhetorical devices. Rhetorical devices in The Scarlet Letter evoked emotions of the audience. In Hawthorne’s work, the devices helped the audience elaborate on the novel. Hawthorne used rhetorical devices to show his character's turmoil. He did this through the character of Hester Prynne, a social outcast bound to isolation by her sins. In novel, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hawthorne depicts Hester’s inner turmoil through the portrayal of the sinful nature of human beings utilizing rhetorical devices.

One example is when Bottom’s head gets turned into a donkey (Shakespeare 1.2.21). This is an example of Dramatic irony because we know why his friends are running away from him because his head is a donkey but he does not know that or that his head is a donkey. Another example of verbal irony is when Helena does not know why Lysander is in love with her (3.2.13-18). This is also dramatic irony because we know why Lysander is in love with her because Puck put the flower juice on Lysander’s eyes to make him fall in love with her however Helena still does not know why Lysander is in love with her. These are some ways that shakespeare uses dramatic irony in A Midsummer Night’s

Situational irony is when the situation is the opposite of what is expected. One example of this is how the townspeople see Dimmesdale as a holy, pure role model, when he is the opposite. After one of his sermons, the audience said “never had man spoken in so wise, so high, and so holy a spirit, as he that spake this day (222).” This irony between the townspeople and the Reverend Dimmesdale shows Hawthorne’s views on the Puritan society. They portray a religious, pure character, when they are actually sinful and corrupt. Another example of situational irony is when the townspeople give Hester the scarlet A to represent her sin of adultery. Later in the book, many people saw the scarlet A as meaning able because of the strength Hester has shown throughout her life. “They said that it meant Able; so strong was Hester Prynne, with a woman’s strength (146).” Not only are the people of the community seeing Hester’s scarlet letter to mean something else, but the letter itself is beautiful. That “scarlet letter, so fantastically embroidered and illuminated upon her bosom. It had the effect of a spell (51).” The townspeople allowed the scarlet A to look beautiful and have a magical effect, but represent a dark and sinful act. The irony here shows Hawthorne viewing the Puritans as corrupt by making them contradict themselves and by not allowing their punishment system to have its intended effect. Overall, Hawthorne uses

One of the many types of irony used to demonstrate the characters’ actions is verbal irony. The court scene in Act III shows an example of verbal irony. Mary Warren and John Proctor are being questioned in affiliation to Elizabeth’s possession of any poppets. Parris was trying to validate the fact that maybe they were uninformed of her custody of these, that maybe she could have hidden her poppets.(The Crucible Verbal Irony 1) In reply to Proctor, Parris says, “We are here, Your Honor, precisely to discover what no one has ever seen.”(Miller 104) He is simply meaning the court is trying to come upon the poppets that allegedly Elizabeth had hidden in her house, that no one has ever

Another example of dramatic irony lies in Edith Wharton’s novel Ethan Frome. The author reveals in the prologue that Ethan remains in Starkville after sustaining a serious injury from a mysterious accident. Although the details are unclear, when Ethan expresses his desire for freedom and a life away from the cold and bitter town, The reader is well aware that he does not get the happy ending he wants so desperately. The most obvious example of dramatic irony present in The Scarlet Letter, is the fictitious friendship between Arthur Dimmesdale and Rodger Chillingworth. Hawthorne reveals early in the novel that the reverend is in fact Pearl’s father. In an exchange between Hester and Chillingworth, he discloses his plans to take vengeance on her lover. Chillingworth, Hester’s husband, remarks “I shall make him tremble” (Hawthorne 71). Once he discovers that Dimmesdale is Hester's former paramour, Chillingwoth attaches himself to the minister like a leech under the guise of friendship. Both Hester and the reader know

This type of irony is used when readers are aware of something a character in the story isnt, this helps build suspense. Readers know Montressor vows revenge on Fortunato. Meanwhile, in the story Fortunate isn't aware. "My dear fortunato, you are luckily met." (pg. 1) This is an example of dramatic irony because readers know Montressor seeks revenge on Fortunato, although throughout the story it remains a mystery why.

“... Thou shalt not bear false witness.” Have you ever heard a quote like this? Have you ever thought of what it meant? Well “...

For example, verbal irony is shown as the reader witnesses Kim stating “how can you cry for those things” and “I think they’re disgusting”(537). It’s verbal irony because at the end of the story Kim leaves the narrator for a caveman. There's also dramatic irony because Kim is having an affair with a caveman. The reader understands this, there's several signs of her being intimate with a caveman in the basement, she would come back up all wet. The narrator is clueless on what's going on with his girlfriend of ten years. In addition, Kim and the narrator experience a stark role reversal, an example of situational irony is because at the beginning of the story the narrator is a sloppy mess.The narrator starts to clean the house, dress up nicely for her, and

John Proctor is asked to name all the Ten Commandments to prove that he is a good Christian. He is able to name all of them except for adultery. He forgets about adultery being a sin and Elizabeth then reminds him. This is ironic because John Proctor had committed adultery and the reader and Elizabeth know this. It is comical, because the very thing he has committed, he forgets and his wife has to remind him about it. This example of irony also relates to my quote about morality. John knows what he has done is wrong and it shows in an ironic way. It contributes to the overall story and drama because it adds comic relief, and shows the faults of

The first example of dramatic irony is when Odysseus and his men are sailing and encounter two Sirens. The reader knows that the men put wax in their ears, but the Sirens don't . When Odysseus put wax “laid it thick on their ears. They tied me up, then, plumb amidships, back to the mast, lashed to the mast, and took themselves again rowing. Soon, as we came smartly within hailing distance, the two Sirens, noted our fast ship off their point, made ready, and they sang”(Line 712-718).

One example of irony in my book Indigo’s Star is a verbal irony. As evidence, on page 63 of Indigo’s Star the text says “One of the rabble, not wanting the entertainment to stop so soon, called out, ‘Hey, Tom, tell us about your mother! How’re the bears getting on?’ Tom shrugged irritably, crossed the room, and banged himself down at a table. To explain, Tom told the rabble members that his mom works with bears at Yellowstone National Park. The rabble members don’t believe Tom, so they like to tease him about it. The rabble member asked Tom how the bears were even though he doesn’t think the bears are real, which is verbal irony.

For instance, when the readers think of a National Guard, one would imagine him or her as keeping the peace in a violent situation. However, in this case the National Guard ends up getting beat up by a civilian. This is portrayed when Alexie writes, “In his hands my father holds a rifle above his head, captured in that moment just before he proceeded to beat the shit out of the National Guard private lying prone on the ground” (Alexie 25). This displays situational irony because the reader expects the National Guard to protect everyone from violence, but he is the one who ends up getting hurt. Another instance where situational irony is displayed in this short story is when the mother and father are discussing heroes. One would expect a person’s hero to be intelligent, successful, and a person of many talents. Contrary to this belief, Victor’s hero is a rock star who had many personal problems and died a terrible death. This is shown when the story says, “’Only the good die young,’ my father

The crooked toothed dentist looks downward upon his fearful client. Wait, a crooked toothed dentist? Ironic, isn’t it. Irony is a clever literary device that many authors use to make the audience stop and ponder what has been said, emphasize a central topic or idea, or do both. Nathaniel Hawthorne, being the exceptional author that he is,uses each of the three types of irony, verbal, dramatic, and situational, to affirm his simple truth, “Be true! Be true! Be true!” throughout his novel.