Irony

Contents: Definitions Types of irony

Irony in use

"Irony consists in stating the contrary of what is meant.“

by Eric Partridge

What is IRONY?

a stylistic device based on a simultaneous

realization of two logical meanings-

dictionary and contextual, but the two meanings

stand in opposition to each other.

Irony

A secondary meaning for IRONY:

"incongruity between what might be expected and what actually occurs"

Classical

Romantic

Tragic

Cosmic

Verbal

Dramatic

Poetic 

Situational

Types of

Irony

Classical referring to the origins of irony

in Ancient Greek comedy

Tragic Based on a distinction

among three basic types of [irony]: verbal, dialectic, and practical."

Romantic Irony"a consistent alternation of affirmation and negation, of exuberant emergence from oneself and self-critical retreat into oneself, of enthusiasm and skepticism."

Cosmic

took on a new and more comprehensive dimension with Hegel, who strongly opposed romantic because of its "annihilating“ (destroying)tendency, seeing in it nothing but poetic caprice."

Tragic irony

Connop Thirlwall in 1833

Verbal dialectic practical

Verbal irony

one meaning is stated and

a different, usually antithetical,

meaning is intended.

"Wonderful day, isn't it?"

. If one looks out of his window at a rain storm and remarks to a friend

Dramatic irony

a plot device according to which (a) the spectators know more than the protago nist; (b) the character reacts in a way contrary to that which is appropriate or wise; (c) characters or situations are compared or contrasted for ironic effects, such as parody; or (d) there is a marked contrast between what the character understands about his acts and what the play demonstrates about them

during the modern period, beginning with romanticism, [irony] has become inseparable from literary and poetic expression itself

Poetic irony

Irony in use

Comic irony

Irony is often used in literature to produce a comic effect. This may also be combined with satire. For instance, an author may facetiously state something as a well-known fact and then demonstrate through the narrative that the fact is untrue.