“Comedy has ceased to be a challenge to the mental processes. It has become a therapy of relaxation, a kind of tranquilizing drug.” James Thurber. In Ramson of Red Chief, O Henry tells a story about a young boy who is kidnapped by these two guys named Sam and Bill. The author uses irony and comedic language to exaggerate the story for a humorous effect. Although the Ramson of Red chief is for a comedic effect it teaches the readers to expect the unexpected.
The author uses irony to make the story amusing. In Ramson the Red Chief, Sam states, “. . . the fun of camping out in a cave had made him forget that he has been captive himself” (68). The kid isn’t bothered by the fact he has been kidnapped from his family in fact he loves it in the cave. The author also uses irony when the father says,
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This story uses hyperboles to add comedic language in it. As Bill was told he would have to be alone with the kid, “. . . his eyes were like a rabbits when you catch it in a trap” (72). Bill was terrified to be alone with the kid because the kid was too much for him. The kid loved to play games and he was very hyper. Bill just could not keep up. Bill did not expect to take of the kid by himself; he was expecting help from Sam. Using hyperboles helps exaggerate a point or situation. As soon as the kid heard Bill and Sam were taking him back to his family “. . . he started up a howl like a calliope” (74). The kid was so upset he threw a tantrum so loud it was like hearing a calliope. In Ransom of Red Chief, O Henry uses hyperboles to convey humor.
In conclusion, the Ramson the Red chief expresses a dark truth that not everything people expected will happen. It could just be the complete opposite. The author creates this story with irony and comedic language to make the plot amusing to the readers. O Henry is not just another author who writes funny stories but an author who can convey a truth about
In the scholarly essay, “The Approximate Size of His Favorite Humor: Sherman Alexie’s Comic Connections and Disconnections in The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven,” the author Joseph L. Coulombe, writes about the humor used in Sherman Alexie’s short stories. Coulombe argues that in Sherman Alexie’s stories that humor is essential for character development and the creation of bonds between these characters.
When they are leaving, the boy’s mother waves but the boy “like Lars, simply [lifts] his hand” (1). He follows Lars’s actions and suppresses his fear indicated by his fidgets. At the same time, the boy understands his father’s urge to create an exciting hunting experience for him, but “when they [turn] back for camp, the boy [feels] only relief” (16) because he does not need to pretend anymore. This means that he suppresses his real emotions when his father feels the frustration of finding no prey in order to meet his father’s expectations of a good hunter. Therefore, he conforms to the expectations of the adults by concealing his feelings and faking his
There are two opposing viwepoints in this article. They are the opinions of the Little Shell people and the US Department of the iinterior, or the DOI. The DOI say that the Little Shell people have not demonstrated cohesion for a during the early 1900s. The Little Shell People, however, have a different viwepoint. The Little Shell Chief in the 1800s did not sell his land to the US, and as a result lost a place on the Chippewa tribal roll and lost their land. This is why the Little Shell could not stay
This is ironic because he is giving advice on how to write a story but he didn’t take his own advice. The last place of irony is when O’Brien says that this story was actually a love story. When most people think of death and war they think of sadness and tragedy. And these war stories, according to O’Brien, were love stories.
“His jaw was in his throat, his upper lip and teeth were gone, his one eye was shut, his other eye was a star-shaped hole...,” writes O’Brien as he studies the deceased enemy (118). Throughout the novel, the author shows consistency with repeating stories and lines in a way to present a greater image. He reminds the reader of details the elaborate his larger view. When he writes of the man he killed, he wants the reader to imagine themselves in his shoes, as he imagined himself in the enemies’. As he carefully studies the dead man, he imagines how the boy found himself in the war. By relating American society to the boy’s village of My Khe, he bridges similarities connecting the two by a culture that promotes defending one’s land and ways of life. By saying, “he would have been taught that to defend the land was a man’s highest duty and highest privilege,” he shows there is minimal difference between how most Americans view the military and the duty of the villagers in My Khe (119). Although he had not known the exact history of the boy, he attempted to illustrate in his own mind what his life may have been like prior to the invasion. The inability for O’Brien to walk away from the body as Kiowa continued to pry him away says he was troubled by the similarities. Despite Kiowa saying it could have been him lying lifeless on
In the story "ransom of Red Chief" the irony creates humor in the story. For example, the author states "What's $250 after all?" referring to them paying too get rid of Red Chief. I find this ironic and funny, because it is quite strange to see kidnappers paying to get rid of someone they kidnapped.
The use of Satire/Irony within literature establishes situations where the unlikelihood of the occurrence of an event will happen. Jackson’s manipulation of his story, The Lottery, provides an unexpected twist to what one may seem to be a normal subject. Northrop Frye’s The Singing School, suggests that all stories are told in either one of four ways: Comedy, Romance, Tragedy or Satire/Irony (Frye 18). The use of Irony and its conventional associations eludes the reader from interpreting a story as a Romance, but instead give the reader a reversed twist. This use of ironic convention in literary work is seen through Shirley Jackson’s short story, The Lottery; the story of Tessie
Many authors use irony to make their writings more diverse, as well as to intensify the literary elements in the story. Shirley Jackson, writer of “The Lottery”, does this in her stories in order to leave the reader in suspense and confusion with her use of situational irony. She also uses dramatic irony to give the story a grotesque twist and to cause the reader more confusion about the characters’ morals. Verbal irony is used to intensify characterization as well as give the reader an insight into the true beliefs of those in the village. The use of irony in all three forms throughout the story adds an intensity to the development of many literary elements throughout the story.
Irony is described by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as “the incongruity between the actual result of a sequence of events and the normal or expected result”. “Ransom of the Red Chief”, as short story written by O. Henry, is full of all types of irony. In this short story a boy, Johnny Dorset, is taken by two kidnappers, Sam and Bill. Ironically, by the end of the story it is the kidnappers who pay ransom to the father. In “Ransom of the Red Chief”, there are many examples of irony which help to enhance the story. Throughout this tale, there are multiple examples of situational, dramatic, and verbal irony.
Irony, or a discrepancy between expectation and reality, is another literary technique used by Tim O’Brien in The Things They Carried. Many of the titles of the stories contain irony themselves. For example, Speaking of Courage is more centred on the themes of failure and the inability to be courageous than it is about courage. The story Love is not, as it would seem, about mutual love, but rather unrequited love. Field Trip, an expression with a usually very positive connotation, is a story about a visit to a battleground where many lives had been lost. The Story How to Tell a True War Story also contains much irony within it. The main point of this story is that a true war story cannot be told because the simple act of telling it makes it untrue. The title of this
In Sherman Alexie’s best work to date " The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven” humor allows his characters to display strength, hide weakness, to expose prejudice, avoid realities and to create bonds (Coulombe, 94). I believe Alexie’s humor engages readers creating positive connections between individuals of diverse backgrounds and disrupts tension between racial communities. Humor is often defined by its fluidity, its paradoxes and its ability to surprise (Coulombe, 95). Humor teaches self-knowledge and social awareness. Alexie’s use of humor encourages readers to think anew by creating a space of shared inquiry and reciprocal empathy.
William Golding, the author of Lord of the Flies, used irony to tell his story of a group of young British boys stranded on a deserted island. The readers can clearly spot the irony in the dialogue and Ralph, one of the main character, is also aware of the irony in his situation. The irony in the novel forces the readers to step aside and think about the hidden meanings the author is trying to express.
Henry ends up fulfilling his worst nightmare. Instead of sticking out the battle with the rest of his regiment, he hides behind some brush in order to spare himself from getting shot.
A very dull and boring story can be made into a great story simply by adding in something that is unexpected to happen. When the unexpected is used in literature it is known as irony. An author uses irony to shock the reader by
The Ramses that the world hailed as "The Spirit of the Sun" would have escaped or died trying.