The Use of Irony in Barbara L. Greenberg's The Faithful Wife

As I read Flannery O’Connor’s short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, I find myself being completely consumed by the rich tale that the author weaves; a tragic and ironic tale that concisely and precisely utilizes irony and foreshadowing with expert skill. As the story progresses, it is readily apparent that the story will end in a tragic and predictable state due to the devices which O’Connor expertly employs and thusly, I find that I cannot stop reading it; the plot grows thicker with every sentence and by doing so, the characters within the story are infinitely real in my mind’s eye. As I consider these factors, the story focuses on two main characters; that of the grandmother, who comes across as self-centered and self-serving and

The irony from the poem “Ordinary Life” by Barbara Crooker shows that this day is nothing but ordinary. For example, lines 2 to 4 says that “the children went off to school without a murmur, remembering their books, lunches, gloves.” However, this is rarely the case, as children are bound to forget things and make lots of noise as they leave the house to go to school. Even as an intermediate student, I have left the house and forgotten my things a countless amount of times. Another example would include line 19. “I peel carrots and potatoes without pairing my thumb.” Now I am no professional cook myself, but I do have to say this is merely impossible. Lastly, lines 22 to 23 state that “And at the table, actual conversation, no bickering or

Have you ever feared your partner isn’t who they say they are? It tends to be a common fear among women, probably because of the amount of women who have married serial killers and didn’t even know it. The wife in the poem may not be afraid that she married a killer but she is definitely worried about not knowing her partner. Jane Kenyon in her poem Surprise uses selective perception, the double, and projection to show the wife’s fear of betrayal.

In my opinion, the author is very open about how she feels about her husband. You can tell that throughout the poem she is repeating herself and stressing on the same idea over and over again. She praises, adores, and loves her husband and is taking an initiative to show it by writing this letter to him. It's interesting how she began the poem by using the word "ever" in the first two lines and how she ended it with the same word on line 12.

In paragraphs three through seven, Brady provides the reader with what she desires in a wife. Through repetition and tone, she shows the reader the unrealistic roles of a wife.

The author directs some of the phrases to women that are reading the poem. For example line 3-4 ” If ever wife was happy in a man, Compare with me, ye women, if you can(Anne Bradstreet).” Basically the author is saying that she thinks her man is the best and no other woman will find a guy as great as him. On the other hand, the letter is referring to one person, his wife. The letter just talks about how he wants his wife to learn how to live without him. The poem talks just about a husband, while the letter includes two kids and a

She seems to be saying that without the pain and the tribulations, a marriage wouldn’t be worth as much. It’s almost like she says that the sacrifices are what makes the marriage worth it. The pain of this marriage results in the ultimate achievement of the objective of marriage. The poem states that all the aches and pains of marriage are worth going through because the love of another is epic.  I found that the two of these poems together were a fascinating combination, because one speaks of the hypocrisy of not doing anything about the flaws in a person’s own characteristics, and the other seems to say to live with the pain that you have to live with the faults; through doing so one will find bliss; it is worth the sacrifice.

Television psychologists and pop culture self-help gurus tell us that marriage is hard work; marriage is compromise; marriage is a choice between being right, and being happy. All of these statements are true. What these experts don’t tell us, however, is that marriage is also about putting on blinders, or looking on the bright side, or one of a hundred other trite phrases to explain the art of self-deception. In marriage, there are times when we may find it necessary to look the other way from our spouse’s faults or indiscretions, in the interest of self-preservation. For if we examine these problems too closely, our darkest, most secret fears may come true. Therefore, it can seem easier to focus on the positive. In her poem “Surprise,” Jane Kenyon uses denial, selective perception, and fear of betrayal to illustrate the self-deception that can occur in marriage.

Audrey is presented as the “Perfectionist”, and is one of the only characters where their perception can actually apply well to their actual being. I thought of Audrey as the obsessive overachiever, someone who is intensely committed (almost to a fault) to school and extracurricular activities. She repeatedly mentions being overwhelmed by school, with her enormous workload of classes and school activities causing her to start losing a stable sleep schedule. Despite being overwhelmed, it’s evident on page 82 that she doesn’t believe she’s doing enough, with her thinking not about her own stress but about how she “knew a handful of students involved in even more activities”. I can relate to this, being that every year in the yearbook I feel

poem wherein she’s revealing her never-ending love, devotion, and appreciation for her spouse. The fact that she was born around the seventeenth century could mean it is puritan culture for women to remain reserved, regardless of how they may truly feel; however, she makes it her obligation to make her husband aware of feelings, whether positive or negative. She uses figurative language and declarative tone through imagery, repetition, and paradoxes to send her message. "To My Dear and Loving Husband" can be interpreted in many ways by many different people depending how it is initially read. This uncertainty allows the poem to be interpreted on a surface level and on a deeper level.

Here we face a paradox, physically that is impossible, but spiritually they complete each other's life so that in marriage, they are one. We also see throughout these lines that she gives her marriage as an example "If ever two were one", "if ever man were loved by wife", "if ever wife was happy in a man". Compare with me ye women if you can. In this verse the poet seems boastful of her relationship; she calls out to women in a bragging manner.

At the end of her novel, My Sister’s Keeper, Jodi Picoult employs the use of irony to show readers that a person cannot always escape their fate. The protagonist, Anna Fitzgerald, was conceived so her sister Kate would have a donor to help treat her cancer. However, Kate no longer wants to take donations from her sister, so she asks her no to give her the kidney she needs. When her parents insist Anna donate the kidney, Anna tries to become medically emancipated. She fights a long battle in court with her mother resisting her every step of the way, but, eventually, she manages to win the trial. However, the story doesn’t end here. On the way home from the trial, she and her lawyer get into a car accident during a thunderstorm, and Anna loses

Dickinson shows in stanza five that the nineteenth century wife never questions her husband. Because this woman accepts the traditions of marriage and she depends so much on her "Master" to take care of her, she agrees completely with him. When she marries him, a "foe of His" (17) becomes an enemy of hers as well. She accepts his opinions of people, politics, religion, or anything else and adopts them as her own, always backing up her husband without question. If the hunter shoots the gun at an enemy, the gun does not question the hunter 's reasons for pulling the trigger. It shoots and kills. The man gives an order. The wife obeys it. If the husband has to relocate for a job, the family moves. If he suggests another way in handling the children, or a change that needs to occur in the wife 's behavior or the way she or others run the house, they change it to the way he wants it. The wife does not second guess her husband and whatever needs to be done she does so immediately.

“My Husband Discovers Poetry”, by Diane Lockward is a very interesting piece of poetry that I have thoroughly enjoyed delving into. The idea behind the poem is that the writer felt angry and discouraged because her husband would never read her work, so essentially to get back at him she wrote a poem about cheating on him. She hid it away in the hopes that he would one day find and read it. This poem is Lockward telling the story of writing her poem, and what happens when her husband finally discovers it. The meaning of the poem is that we must support our loved ones.

Ritchie describes marriage as a constant remembrance and up-hill battle; she also understands that everything happens for a reason. The speaker in the poem is remembering certain times when she was with her loved one, she happens to reminisce these memories as she is doing her laundry. She recalls the time they both spent together, both good and bad. This poem also contains metaphors and similes throughout specific pieces of clothing; through every-day occurrences which makes the speaker in the poem remember certain times she spent with her loved one. “ pillowcases, despite so many/ washings, seems still/ holding our dreams” (Lines 7-9) which seem to indicate that no matter how difficult times may appear to be that her and her loved one will still be together. Many times people will dream to achieve their goal in life and they do whatever it takes to make sure it is achieved. “ Our king-sized sheets/ like tablecloths/ for the banquet of giants” (Lines 4-6) It also explains in metaphors how working together is what will make their dreams come true, a relationship needs two people to make it work. The speaker also mentions how certain things went awry but thinking about them now were like stepping stones into their future. As the speaker is going through her laundry there are still pieces of clothing that are worn-out but still have a