1. Irony
and its impact on theme

2. Irony and its impact on theme
Name:
Date:
Block:
What is irony?
What are the three types of irony? Define them.
What is the relationship between irony and theme?
A quote about irony:
Examples of irony in your life:
Your notes go here.

3. To begin…
How is this picture ironic?

4. To begin…
“The supreme irony of life is that hardly anyone gets out of it alive.”
Robert A. Heinlein

5. In general, irony is a discrepancy between appearances and reality.

6. Types of Irony: All irony is a contradiction Verbal irony
Occurs when someone says one thing but really means another
When do you use verbal irony?

7. Types of Irony: Situational Irony
Is the difference between what is expected to happen, or what would be appropriate to happen, and what really does happen
Has this ever happened in your life?

8. Types of Irony: Dramatic Irony
Occurs when the audience knows more than the characters themselves
What type of genre of film does this most resemble?

9. Irony’s Relationship to Theme:
Just as conflict drives the plot of a story which leads to theme, irony drives you to discover the theme of a story.
All roads lead to theme!

10. First, let’s review theme:
Theme = moral; message of a story
Remember: Theme is rarely stated. You therefore must extract the theme through careful reading and analysis.
Elements to consider when looking for theme:
Characterization (protagonist(s) and antagonist(s))
Conflict
Major plot events
Literary elements used

11. Irony’s relationship to theme:
When an ironic situation occurs in a text, the reader looks at the contradictory nature of the character’s actions.
This contradiction leads to the lesson to be learned.
Thus leading to a theme!

12. A quote about irony:
“The supreme irony of life is that hardly anyone gets out of it alive.”
Robert A. Heinlein

13. Examples of irony:
Think of ironic situations in your life and write a short narrative of how each occurred.
Verbal irony
Situational irony
Dramatic irony
If you can’t think of examples that really happened to you, make them up! Use that imagination!