A Resemblance Of Harmonious Discord

Discuss the irony of the following statement and the situation which it describes on pg. 153. “…there fooled what I later realized was a sickeningly comic aspect of an unfunny situation: the men talked in near-whispers.”

Yet, even in evaluating how anger is emotionally imposed on the audience due to the absurdity of the proposal, it’s impossible to disregard the role of humor. There are obvious elements of humor throughout the proposal and amusement in the very nature of the proposal is expected. However, any sense of humor abruptly disappears at the heart of the critism. When the proposer begins stating “I can think of no one objection that will possibly be raised against this proposal” the humor stops and the voice of Swift, as well as sharp criticism, begins. Although humor may be an integral part of the proposal and certainly a partial indication of the use of Horatian satire, the fact that humor isn’t present throughout the whole proposal suggests that the use of hilarity is secondary. Rather, this contrast of humor and emotionally imposed irritation only helps to emphasize the role of anger. This is especially evident when one considers the irony that litters the humorous proposal.

In the play “Wit,” highly esteemed professor of seventeenth century poetry, Vivian Bearing, finds out that she has stage four terminal cancer. The Doctor who tells her the diagnosis, does so in a very clinical and non-emotional way; he appears to describe her cancer and treatment comparable to how her college literature professor described her punctuation in her poem. He explained everything in medical terminology, which was not understandable by those outside of the medical field. A research study showed that even college educated patients struggled with understanding the meaning of certain words used by medical staff and based on these results it is recommended that Doctors should adjust their language to match the patient's cognition

“better a witty fool, than a foolish wit” (1.5.327). Here, Shakespeare uses Feste to articulate his

    The existence of considerable irony within the Shakespearean tragedy Hamlet is a fact recognized by most literary critics. This paper will examine the play for instances of irony and their interpretation by critics.

In the following excerpt of a speech from Shakespeare’s play Henry VIII Shakespeare uses a selection of literary devices to convey the emotions of his character Cardinal Wolsey. Shakespeare does an exceptional job at using rhetorical devices to convey the bitter feelings Wolsey feels after his dismissal as advisor to the king. The disappointment and rage Shakespeare portrays through Wolsey’s character relates to people who’ve experienced an unexpected job loss. Wolsey’s soliloquy expresses his grief and acrimony while he attempts to accept his dismissal. Shakespeare conveys Wolsey’s anger and bitterness through allusions, figurative language, and a shift in tone.

Gulliver’s Travels was written during the 18th Century and mocks the governing spirit among the English and people of Europe of that time, and even extends to all of mankind. Swift uses metaphors to expose society of its pretensions and reveals his disapproval of their behaviour. Swift’s clever use of satire achieves this by not directly addressing the flaws of the English but by doing so in a veiled manner,

Known for his tragedy, intrigue, comedy, and romance, Shakespeare extends his boundary of prowess in the play Macbeth. The irony present in the play, the double-meaning of the characters’ actions, and the complexity of setting all contribute to a thrilling story of murder and looking beyond the superficial. Dramatic, situational, and verbal irony greatly contribute to the theme of things are not what they seem in Macbeth text and film. Shakespeare uses the contrast in irony to convey this in the character’s words, actions, and the audience’s awareness. The textual and film evidence fully supports the theme and displays the author’s affluent use of irony.

Mary Wollstonecraft’s epistolary essay “A Vindication of the Rights of Men” acts as a direct, scathing response to Edmund Burke’s opinionated piece regarding the French Revolution, “Reflections on the Revolution in France”. This essay will examine the use of satire as a mode in the opening sections of Wollstonecraft’s “Vindication”, as well as comparing her lexical choices to those of her addressee, Edmund Burke. The Oxford English Dictionary states that “satire” is “… [A] work of art which uses humour, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize prevailing immorality or foolishness, esp. [sic] as a form of social or political commentary.” Humour is too exaggerated to relate to Wollstonecraft’s work, but ridicule as a

Without doubt, Edgar Allan Poe’s story is one of the author’s masterpiece. The story is an exhibit of artistic genius with various literary features well incorporated. Among them, irony, defined as, “A figure of speech which is a contradiction or incongruity between what is expected and what actually occurs”, is the most evident. Allan Poe demonstrates the use of various types of irony throughout the play, which he uses to pass the intended message to the audience.

During the Age of Enlightenment, people began believing in and relying upon rational thought instead of religious dogma to explain the world. This newfound emphasis on rationality promoted a breadth of freedom in speech that was previously unknown, a fact which was utilized by philosophers such as John Locke, Rousseau, and Sir Isaac Newton. In addition, the Age of Enlightenment produced famous writers who didn’t agree with the irrational politics and old traditions of their respective countries, and instead relied upon wit and satire to expose the corruption and poor human condition existing around them. These Enlightenment writers use irony in their satires to get their interpretations regarding the human condition across.

Jonathan Swift's 1729 essay, A Modest Proposal, was a true example of satire at its best. Many readers at the time rejected the essay because they failed to understand the irony. It is presently one of the most well known works of satire and is a classic example of the technique most commonly used today. The entire essay from the title down to the last sentence were meant to be taken ironically, which is a rare form, but very effective when trying getting a point across. This essay will explain why the text was meant to be taken ironically and why Swift used irony instead of straightforward statements.

Shakespeare’s work is littered with metaphors; some which require careful reading to pick up on, while others are easily detectable. Simon Palfrey states that “Shakespeare’s

Humour and satire are two concepts that are both wide ranging and diverse, from dark, to light hearted, with each producing a different effect. Humour in the main, is something that is used to please the audience, its function is to invoke laughter amongst its audience. Satire is used to create a comical critical view of the subject at hand, this can range from a light hearted comical way, to a judgemental way, with each style giving the text a different meaning, however this does not mean that satire cannot be humorous, which can evident in the use of parody and irony within texts. Within literature both concepts play an important role to how the text is viewed, humour can include word play, grammatical jokes, to even inside jokes with the author and reader, and with satire, including that of irony and parody, with each style and type delivering humour in its own unique way. These differing styles of humour can be found in a variety of forms including Jasper Forde’s The Eyre Affair (2001), with its silly atmosphere, word play and grammar jokes, and the use of light hearted satire and parody to brighten up the text, and Julian Barnes A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters (1989), where there is a more serious atmosphere, with a more critical, satirical eye on history and characters, as well as using irony to achieve its comical effect, and the position of the world. Each text is humorous and satirical in its own right, and with each author using different techniques to

Accordingly, in “The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer displays three specific forms of irony. One form of irony which is demonstrated in the selection is that of dramatic irony. Dramatic irony is a literary technique where the full significance of a character’s words or actions are clear to the audience or reader but are unknown to the character. In the “Pardoners Tale”, three men set out to kill death in revenge. During their journey, the second man makes a promise to keep the first man’s secret. The readers by this moment in time, know for a fact that this man’s word means absolutely nothing. As the journey progresses, the men abandoned their vow to kill death and instead claimed gold which was not theirs and are now conspiring to break the vow to divide the money equally. “That on my word, I nothing will betray” (Chaucer, 720). The statement “On my word”, turns out to be a statement depicting dramatic irony. By this time the audience knows that the man’s inability to keep his word, will in turn be the down fall and dramatic irony of the selection.