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Examples Of Irony In A Midsummer Night's Dream

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"Bottom, you've been transformed," (Shakespeare 38). During this part of the scene, Nick Bottom's head was turned into that of a donkey. It was an example of irony. Irony is when the exact opposite of what you expect to happen actually occurs. There are three different types of irony: situational, verbal, and dramatic. In the play, A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare, there are many instances of irony.
Puck, the fairy, caused numerous problems in the lives of many people. He was the root of almost every example of irony in the entire play. The first example is when he turned Nick Bottom’s head into that of a donkey. The irony here is in Bottom’s name. He was turned into a donkey, or an ass, which is a synonym for the word “bottom.” This is an example of verbal irony, since the irony had to do with words or phrases. However, Bottom’s name is not only irony. It is also an example of foreshadowing, for it hinted at what would happen to him later in the play. …show more content…

When he was turned into a donkey, he did not realize this. He thought his companions were playing a trick on him when they ran away from him and said, “Oh my god! We’re haunted. Come on guys, let’s go,” (Shakespeare 38). Bottom continued to practice his part for the play, as if nothing odd had happened. This is an example of dramatic irony, for the audience knew that Bottom’s head had been turned into a donkey’s head, but Bottom did not realize this. Like in the last instance of irony, this was caused by the fairies because Puck was the one that turned Bottom’s head into a donkey. Without irony in this scene, the play would have been very dull and not as humorous to

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