Different types of irony within The Crucible
The Crucible contains several examples of situational, verbal, and dramatic irony. Arthur Miller uses irony in many ways, his reason for using irony is to catch and keep the reader’s attention. For example he uses dramatic irony to create anxiety and tension within the story. Many other authors use irony to make their audience think about what is being said as well as what is going on in the story. Most irony is used intentionally, but in some cases it can be used unintentionally. Irony is used to illustrate a point which is better than just plainly saying something.The Crucible contains several examples of dramatic, verbal, and situational irony.
Dramatic irony is a situation of shock or drama in a story. This irony is most understood and known by the audience/person reading it, but is not yet understood by the characters in the story or play. In Act 1 Reverend Hale visits the Proctors home in Salem. Not only has he
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Without irony an author’s story will not be as interesting and will not keep the reader or audience’s attention for too long. Above dramatic irony was very sufficient because the reader knew about John’s affair, although Reverend Hale was unaware. This may have grabbed the reader’s attention more and lead them to suspension as to how or if Hale would find out. In my example of verbal irony, it was used in a form of sarcasm when it almost seems as if the outcome was backwards. For instance the innocents should live while the accused should be the one to die. Situational irony grabs the reader’s attention because what the reader thinks is going to happen doesn't necessarily happen. The readers were not looking for Abigail to be lying, deceiving and guilty of committing adultery. Irony is the most important piece in a
Although Samuel Parris was sought out to be a respected reverend, his personal and physical actions make him an ugly selfish man. Samuel Parris shows that he is not an honest man throughout the play. Samuel Parris states early on that he didn’t see the girls dancing in the forest in court, while he constantly says to Abigail that he saw her, this is ironic because Parris gets defensive of others apparent lies. “Excelecy, you surely cannot think to let so vile a lie be spread in open court.”
Dramatic irony is a huge part of 'The Crucible' as throughout the play, there are many ideas and notions that the audience knows but the other characters do not. In many scenes, especially scenes with Abigail Williams, there is an ounce of dramatic irony that causes frustration among the audience, whilst also creating a story line. An example of this is when the audience knows Abigail and "the girls" are lying about witches in Salem because of the scene in Act One describing how scared they were about people finding out what happened in the woods. The audience, Abigail and "the girls" know the whole witch idea is a huge rouse but the other characters in the play do not have any idea. This causes the audience to become overly frustrated and
In the Scarlet Letter, the most obvious example of irony is the fact that Reverend Dimmesdale is Hester’s counterpart and fellow adulterer. Dimmesdale’s sin is dramatically ironic because the readers catch on to it much sooner than most of the characters in the story. The audience slowly realizes that Dimmesdale was Hester’s companion because of several events. First, whenever he is to speak about Hester or on the topic of sins, he becomes very pale and shaky. He also progressively appears sicker and more gaunt due to the guilt that builds up inside his body and consumes his mind.
Oh the irony.... Arthur Miller portrays the irony of the puritan society through Elizabeth Proctor. Through the way she carries herself, by what others say and how she reacts in certain situations. Arthur Miller reveals irony throughout the story by the judging of others. Miller shows this through the character Goody Proctor when she states, “I can not judge you.
Irony is used in this story to express how generous and nice Miss Strangeworth may seem, but at the same time it shows just how evil a person can be. When Miss Strangeworth drops the letter, that's an example of situational irony. When Miss Strangeworth writes the letters to the people of the town, that's an example of verbal irony. When Miss Strangeworths roses are found destroyed with a little note, that's an example of dramatic
Kate Chopin used situational and dramatic irony in order to buy some mystery and it can leaves you thinking at the end. Situational irony is when the opposite of what you expect happend. The other irony Kate Chopin uses is Dramatic wich means when the audience/reader knows something that a character doesnt. One type of situational irony that louise was happy when she found out that her husband was dead. This is situational irony because most woman would be sad.
Irony may appear in difference ways within literature. Irony changes our expectations of what might happen. It can create the unexpected twist at the end of a story or anecdote that gets people laughing or crying. Verbal irony is intended to be a humorous type of irony. Situational irony can be either funny or tragic.
What is irony, and what is its’ role in literary works that makes it so important to us? Irony can be defined as a contrast or incongruity between expectations for a situation and reality, which can further more be broken down into three main types of irony: verbal, dramatic, or situational. In both Young Goodman Brown and Sweat, irony is displayed in each story’s situation, from the world not being as good as one sees in Young Goodman Brown, to the epitome of a bad marriage as seen in Sweat. The literary work Young Goodman Brown by Nathaniel Hawthorne displays irony mainly through displaying that evil is just a part of the world and human nature, and that man and woman are not all good and believing so can eventually drive one
Situational irony is created in the text through Proctor reciting “ thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image… You have said that twice, sir… Adultery, John”(Miller.II.12.). This is an example of Situational Irony because the only commandment Proctor couldn’t remember is the one he broke. Proctor’s inability to remember his commandments causes the community to question his faithfulness to his religion and in return creates conflict later in the trials when people question his judgment and accuse him of witchcraft.
When really he wasn’t. Another example of verbal irony is when Sarah says “The maze is a piece of cake.” But really the labyrinth was really hard for her. Lastly, when Hoggle says “I’m not interested in friends,” he actually did want friends. This is creating suspense because we are curious on what will happen next and we want to see what will eventually happen.
Another occurrence of irony emphasizing the flaw within the court’s process of prosecution is when he states Mary Warren’s punishment and the girl’s punishment. He states that if Mary Warren “has been conquered by Satan...her neck will break for it but if she speaks true, I bid you now drop your guile and confess your pretense, for a quick confession will go easier on you”( Miller 95). A situational irony is an event that surprises the audience. This would be considered ironic since both crimes of Mary Warren and the girls are on the same level of severity and seriousness. However, Mary Warren is the only one being killed for her confession of her crimes, while the others live.
In Act 4 of Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, Giles Corey refuses to plead guilty resulting in a heroic death, which reveals the excessive confidence and pride Giles shares in his own beliefs and values. This is shown through the literary devices irony and symbolism. Before John Proctor makes up his mind about confessing, he briefly talks with Elizabeth. Proctor asks Elizabeth if Giles Corey, a long time member of the Salem community, had confessed yet. She then explains, “He were not hanged.
Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible in 1953, as a response to McCarthyism, which is, in general, accusing people of crimes with little to no proof. It ran rampant through the United States during the Second Red Scare through the early 1950s (exactly when Arthur Miller wrote The Crucible). In The Crucible, Miller juxtaposes the leaders, who rationally think for themselves, and the followers, who believe what everybody else believes, through irony, imagery, and denotation. The Crucible is riddled with irony, and Arthur Miller utilizes situational and dramatic irony to show the difference between followers and leaders.
The one scene that uses irony is when King Duncan finds that a man was a traitor and gives Macbeth the title Thane of Cawdor believing he is a good man in Act 1, scene 2 page 353. What though the audience knows, that he doesn’t is that Macbeth will kill him and take over his throne. Another memorable example deals with the invitation of Duncan over to Macbeth’s quarters to eats with them, where he believes that macbeth is a kind man and a good friend. But as soon as Duncan falls asleep, Macbeth stabs him and kills him for once and for all in act 2, scene 1 page 368. This is an ironic because once again, the audience knew what was coming despite of Duncan’s
Irony forces the reader to notice the difference more clearly. In conclusion, without irony, stories of any kind would not have any appeal and probably be very boring.