Brief samples for Pride & Prejudice outline

Good thesis statement: identifies the source of the dramatic irony (the tension between the impression Collins is trying to make and the impression he is actually making) By his use of diction, hyperbole, and syntax, Collins’s language produces dramatic irony as he ridicules himself without realizing it.

Good body paragraph Uses specific textual reference for details Explicitly identifies both hyperbole and dramatic irony

Collins’s use of hyperbole creates dramatic irony He says that he is “run away by [his] feelings” to seem emotional and passionate, but he is playing the part of a lover in such an exaggerated way, and without any justification, that Elizabeth finds it amusing. This creates dramatic irony because he thinks he is coming across as romantic but the reader understands that he is coming across as foolish. He says he wants “to choose a wife from among” these girls to spare them when “the melancholy event takes place” of their father’s death. This is ironic because he is clearly exaggerating about why he was so kind as to choose a wife from this estate. The audience knows that he is not sincere about the daughters’ feelings. His courtship is over the top as he tries to “assure” her of the “violence of his affections”. This is ironic because he has no violent affection for Elizabeth. The reader knows that he just met her and he initially wanted to propose to her sister.

p.s. In English a singular noun is made possessive by the addition of an ‘s Even when the noun ends in an s I know, it looks funny. But it is right. Collins’s Collins’ would mean many people named Collin have possession of something. Which they clearly don’t.