Irony

1. Irony An inconsistency between appearance and reality. There are several types of irony…

2. Verbal Irony • Occurs when a speaker or writer says one thing but actually means the opposite. • For example, when your mom walks into your filthy bedroom and says, “I see you‘ve cleaned your room!” • Sarcasm, overstatement (also called hyperbole), and understatement, are all types of verbal irony.

3. Situational Irony • Occurs when there is a contrast between what is expected to happen and what actually does happen. • An example of situational irony would be if a thief’s house was broken into at the same time he was robbing someone else’s house.

4. Dramatic Irony • Occurs when the audience or the reader is aware of something that a character does not know. • An example of dramatic irony can be seen in Romeo and Juliet when the audience knows that Juliet is not really dead, but Romeo does not.

5. Related vocabulary • Regionalism • Descriptions of setting, dialect, or character actions that indicate a specific location for a story. • This story is set in a California gold rush mining town. • Watch for regionalisms that support the setting. • Frame story • In a frame story, two plots exist. The outer story established a situation that leads to the plot of the inner story. • When the inner story’s plot is resolved, the outer story resumes. The two stories provide support or contrast to one another. • In this story, does the outer story support or contrast with the inner one?