Indian Camp Irony

Essay #1: Irony is one of the most common literary devices to spot in fiction. Verbal irony, situational irony, dramatic irony and cosmic irony. Verbal irony occurs when a character says one thing but, the opposite is meant. An example of this would be in Ernest Hemingway’s short story “Indian Camp.” In the story Uncle George mutters “Oh, you are a great man, all right.” This statement is ironic because Uncle George is upset that he was bit by the Indian woman. Reading this without context of the story it makes the quote seem like a compliment. But in reality the dialogue is meant more as an insult to the Indian man. Because the quote was meant to be an insult instead of a compliment as it can come across as it makes the dialogue

Many examples occur in fiction. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s short story “Diamond as Big as the Ritz” Braddock Washington is an very wealthy man. So wealthy in fact that he keeps his estate a secret. His wealth created a monster out of a him. To protect his wealth he would shoot down aircraft, hold the passengers of the aircraft prisoners, hold slaves ,and kill people if they tried to escape the compound. The mountain that supposedly is one big diamond is the most treasured thing to Braddock. But in the end of the story to protect his wealth and power he blows up the mountain so no one else can access the diamond mines. This is unexpected because, for one man to go to such extent to protect his secret and then just blow it up in the end is the opposite of what readers would think. Making the shocking end to “Diamond as Big as the Ritz”

In the short stories “The Other Two” and “Indian Camp” they play the very different roles. In Ernest Hemingway’s “Indian Camp” there is only one woman in the play that plays a role. The Indian mother struggling to give birth is the only woman in the play. The mother in the play never says anything. The only thing she does in the story is scream and bite Uncle George’s arm. The event she goes through is shown as very brutal and very gruesome. A C-section operation with a jack knife and nine foot tapered gut leaders. Until the very end of the story is when we see the strength of women. When Nick asks his father “Do many men kill themselves, Daddy?” Nick’s father responds with “Not very many, Nick.” Then Nick asks “ Do many women?” Nick’s father responds “Hardly ever.” These responses from Nick’s father shows the mental strength of women. The Indian man killing himself shows the weakness that men have mentally. Nick’s father saying this shows that women have more mental strength compared to men. In “The Other Two” by Edith Wharton women are shown as the property of their husband but Mrs. Waythorn uses this to her advantage. In the story she is not ridiculed for divorcing she uses the divorces to climb the social ladder. Mrs. Waythorn’s climbing of the social ladder like this shows how she out smarts the men. She uses the marriages to create a better life for her and her plagued daughter. Mrs. Waythorn’s ability to climb the social