Preview

Plato's Use Of Situational Irony

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
147 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Plato's Use Of Situational Irony
Authors use situational irony to convey themes to make the audience expect something to happen from what actually happens. For instance, in the story “The Apology” Plato uses irony to propel the theme that too much learning is a dangerous thing. The situational irony of “they were wrong to kill me." means that the prisoner Socrates should’ve been celebrated for his knowledge instead is killed. Familiar to the story “By the Waters of Babylon” Stephen Vincent addresses the matter believe those who are seeking, doubt those who find it. By including “If you eat too much of the truth at once, you may die of the truth." shows that the character father encouraged his son not to tell the villagers the truth because they will believe he is absurd. (Benét

Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Richard Connell's Use Of Foreshadowing In 'The Most Dangerous Game'
    • 488 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Richard Connell's Use Of Foreshadowing In 'The Most Dangerous Game'

    One last technique the author uses to keep the reader’s attention is situational irony. Situational irony is when something entirely different than intended happens. Situational irony holds the reader’s attention by making a plot twist more entertaining. “‘We try to be civilized here.’ ‘Civilized? And you shoot down men?’”(75). This quote shows situational irony because General Zaroff is saying he’s civilized, but he hunts down men.…

    • 488 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Lord Of The Flies Irony Analysis
    • 294 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Lord Of The Flies Irony Analysis

    Irony, in literature can be anything from sarcasm to a shocking plot twist that can be inconvenient to the characters toward the end. A type of irony is situational which is where something very unexpected shows up at the last minute making the outcome of the story completely different then you expected. Such as the one in Lord of the Flies that effects one special character named Simon, and really almost all the characters.…

    • 294 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Theme Of Situational Irony In The Crucible
    • 82 Words
    • 1 Page

    Theme Of Situational Irony In The Crucible

    Secondly, situational irony is a discrepancy, or difference between what's expected and what really happens. One such example of this type of irony occurs for the accused; The punishment of "witches". Do they die because they truthfully say they aren't witches or live with the lie that they are? Goody Proctor was a genuine person, and yet died with the truth that she was innocent of witchcraft. What is more important, morals, or your own life? You're the judge of the case.…

    • 82 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Fahrenheit 451 Allusion Analysis
    • 562 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Fahrenheit 451 Allusion Analysis

    Irony is a literary technique, originally used in Greek tragedy. In the story, The Pedestrian Bradbury uses irony to write the whole story. Mr. Mead wasn’t doing anything wrong, he was just walking and yet he was arrested. Another example of irony is in the story Fahrenheit 451 when he explains the fireman’s theory. “Plant the books, turn in the alarm, and see the fireman’s houses burn, is that what you mean?” (85). The wrong is so obvious in both of these examples but things that are wrong still happen and irony is used to make us see these wrongs…

    • 562 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Hangings In An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge
    • 616 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Hangings In An Occurrence At Owl Creek Bridge

    Irony is an event that the reader expects to happen, but is the quite opposite, usually for a funny or dramatic effect. In An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, Peyton Fahrquar is sentenced to death by hanging by the federal military during the civil war for attempting to burn a bridge they were controlling. In this short story, Fahrquar jumps off of the bridge with the noose around his neck and his hands and feet tied, but he still lives. This is an example of irony because the reader will expect him to die instantaneously, but suddenly it was as if the rope grew longer and he fell into the water. As he ‘escapes’, sharpshooters aim and fire, but not a single round will touch him. At the end of the short story, it explains how Fahrquar runs all night to get to his family, just as…

    • 616 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Compare And Contrast The Interlopers And The Story Of An Hour
    • 490 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Compare And Contrast The Interlopers And The Story Of An Hour

    In The Story of an Hour situational irony is used when Mr. Mallard turns up alive when during the whole story he is thought to be dead. It is ironic when Mrs. Mallard dies at the end of the story. There is foreshadowing for Mrs. Mallard dying but it is still unexpected. It is also ironic when we are not told any details about Mrs. Mallard’s death when throughout the whole story so far we have been told everything that Mrs. Mallard is thinking. In The Interlopers there is situational irony when Ulrich and Georg are eaten by wolves at the end of the story. This is ironic because the two men just became friends and it is expected that they will be rescued and live happily ever after but instead they are killed by wolves. There was slight foreshadowing of their fate being decided by nature when the story states that the creatures were abnormally active tonight but the ending was still much…

    • 490 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Irony in "The Pardoner's Tale"
    • 501 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Irony in "The Pardoner's Tale"

    Situational irony occurs when what actually happens is the opposite of what is expected or appropriate. An instance where situational irony occurs is in the prologue where the Pardoner states that he preaches that the root of all evil is avarice. The only reason he preaches is to convince people to buy his pardons and holy relics so he can satisfy his own selfish desires. We would not expect a preacher to preach against his own vice. Another example occurs after the Pardoner finishes his tale. He attempts to sell his pardons to the travelers, starting with the Host, claiming, "He is most-enveloped in all sin." The irony here is that the Pardoner himself is probably the most sinful of the all the travelers.…

    • 501 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Critical Lens Essay
    • 490 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Critical Lens Essay

    Dramatic irony- the reader knows something the character doesn’t know Unexpected irony- something happens differently than what is expected Verbal irony- the character says the opposite of what he means…

    • 490 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Antigony
    • 414 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Antigony

    This example from Antigone could also be considered as situational irony. Both the reader and the characters expected Antigone to live a happy, care-free life once she was granted her life back. Creon gave in to Haemon’s proposal of allowing Antigone to live, even after she disobeyed Creon and gave her brother a…

    • 414 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Dramatic Irony in Hamlet
    • 1184 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Dramatic Irony in Hamlet

    -Dramatic Irony is when the words and actions of the characters in a work of literature are known to the audience or reader, but they are not known to certain characters in the story. The reader or audience has a greater knowledge of many of the characters themselves.…

    • 1184 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Irony in "A Pair of Tickets" and "A Rocking Horse Winner"
    • 1418 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Irony in "A Pair of Tickets" and "A Rocking Horse Winner"

    Two of the many definitions of irony that I like are found on dictionary.com. The first definition states that irony is “incongruity between what is expected to be and what actually is, or a situation or result showing such incongruity” (“Irony”). The second defines Dramatic irony as "…irony that is inherent in speeches or a situation of a drama and is understood by the audience but not grasped by the characters in the play” (“Dramatic irony”). In reading D.H. Lawrence’s short story “A Rocking Horse Winner” and Amy Tan’s short story “A Pair of Tickets”, I find elements within each piece that are wonderful examples of both of the above definitions. Both authors have a similar use of situational and verbal irony, a use of irony in the way in which the characters see himself or herself versus how others see them, and a use of irony in what the characters expected to happen versus what in fact happened, all of which help to sustain the storyline and to assist the reader in personalizing each story…

    • 1418 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Drunkard
    • 287 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The Drunkard

    The example of situational irony is that at the public house Larry saves his dad from getting drunk by (inadvertently) getting drunk himself. This is definitely not what anyone expected to happen in the circumstances and with the characters of the story and is therefore situational irony. The example of dramatic irony is that the neighbors and Larry's mom all believe that Mick and his buddies intentionally got Larry drunk; however the reader was "there" with Mick and Larry and knows the truth, knows what the characters in the story do not know.…

    • 287 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Examples Of Irony In The Cast Of Amontillado
    • 184 Words
    • 1 Page

    Examples Of Irony In The Cast Of Amontillado

    What would you consider to be ironic? An example of Irony is easy to find in the story “The Cast of Amontillado”. The story writes about a man (narrator) who makes a plan and executes it as well to seek his revenge for something that we don’t know. An example of how the man uses Irony is in a conversation between him and the man he is seeking to get vengeances on, yet the readers already know that his plan is to kill him not just hurt him. “‘Drink,” I said, presenting him the wine.…

    • 184 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Socrates Irony Analysis
    • 104 Words
    • 1 Page

    Socrates Irony Analysis

    Socrates death was a trial and execution. He had two charges on him, one of them was corrupting the youth and impiety, which means a lack of respect for something. He came up with one of the types of irony called the Socrates irony. The Socrates irony means "The dissimulation of ignorance practiced by Socrates as a means of confuting an adversary". Which means Socrates would pretend to be oblivious to what they are talking about to draw out the basic craziness in the arguments of the questioners. The Socrates irony was also in Plato's discussions but, was twisted a little bit for Plato.…

    • 104 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Irony of Plato
    • 1067 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Irony of Plato

    One could often hear politicians to be regarded as charismatic or charming. However, seldom, if ever, does one associate these adjectives with a political system. The lack of connection between the two words did not stop a great philosopher, Plato, to describe democracy exactly with one of these terms: “Democracy … is a charming form of government, full of variety and disorder; and dispersing a sort of equality to equals and unequals alike” (Plato 214). The underlining message of the quoted sentence leads one to believe Plato employed the adjective – charming – with a great degree of sarcasm. The philosopher states that democracy brings instability to a state which is governed by the many. Plato is also voicing his opinion regarding those who get to govern through democracy: the power to rule is given to those who are worth it, “equals”, and those who may be undeserving of it, “unequals”. Even the wording he uses buries a negative connotation towards democracy. Thus, the quote sheds an off-putting light on democracy and Plato’s favoritism for aristocracy becomes evident.…

    • 1067 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More

Related Topics