Irony

Irony (Gr. είρωνεία (eironeia), from είρων (eiron): one who says less than he means, hypocrite, είρειν (eirein): to speak), a form of speech in which the real meaning is concealed or contradicted by the words used. Irony is the perception that things are not what they are said to be or what they seem. Dramatic irony lies in the audience's deeper perceptions of the coming fate, which are at odds with the character's perceptions.

H. W. Fowler, in Modern English Usage, had this to say of irony:

Irony is a form of utterance that postulates a double audience, consisting of one party that hearing shall hear and shall not understand, and another party that, when more is meant than meets the ear, is aware, both of that 'more' and of the outsider's incomprehension.

The Greek word was particularly used of an understatement in the nature of dissimulation. It is especially exemplified in the assumed ignorance which Socrates adopted as a method of dialectic, the "Socratic irony." Socratic irony is a profession of ignorance that disguises a skeptical, non-committed attitude towards some dogma or universal opinion that is not founded on reason or logic. Socrates' "innocent" inquiries expose step by step the vanity or illogicality of the proposition. The irony is appreciated by those onlookers who know that Socrates is wiser than he permits himself to appear and who may perceive slightly in advance the direction the "naive" questioning is taking. Fowler desribes it:

The two parties in his audience were, first, the dogmatist, moved by pity and contempt to enlighten this ignorance, and, secondly, those who knew their Socrates and set themselves to watch the familiar game in which learning should be turned inside out by simplicity.

There is irony inherent in inappropriate behavior. Continued politeness in the face of threats of violence, for example, is perceived by a witness as increasingly ironic as it becomes increasingly inappropriate. Sometimes the "second" audience is the private self of the ironist.

When not recognised, irony can lead to misunderstanding. Even if an ironic statement is recognized as such, it is often less clear what the speaker or writer wants to say than when it is said directly.

Table of contents

1 Irony and sarcasm 2 Use of irony 2.1 External link

Irony and sarcasm

Heavy-handed irony, in which the flat opposite of the truth is emphatically stated--perhaps with accompanying body language to deny the words--is the form of irony called sarcasm. Sarcasm is particularly employed for the purpose of ridicule, mockery or contempt, frequently taking the form of a sarcastic phrase.

An example of sarcastic speech would be a response such as "Well done" or "Great job" in an angry tone to a worker who has done something wrong. An ironic "Well done" would come when a firefighter across the street from a burning building sees a child on the window ledge and dashes across through traffic, to catch the falling child in his arms. Both the speaker and the firefighter understand that "Well done" doesn't begin to express the half of it. Their shared perception is irony.

Examples of ironic incidents might be a landlord evicted from his or her home, or an atheist killed by a falling cross -- in the first case, there is an incongruity between what happens (the person is evicted) and what is expected (the person normally rents homes to others); in the second case, there is a strong contrast between the person's beliefs and his or her actual fate.

Use of irony

The word "irony" is frequently used figuratively, especially in such phrases as "the irony of fate," of an issue or result that seems to contradict normal expectations derived from the previous state or condition.

"Ironic" is often misused in common speech when "coincidental" is meant: "Oh, isn't that ironic! I was just about to call you!" Thus, one of Alanis Morissette's most famous songs is "Ironic", which contains a series of unfortunate or unusual events, trivial oddities that are presented to the listener with the refrain "isn't it ironic, don't you think?". Various enthusiastic Internet writers have taken it upon themselves to prove at great length that Morissette's examples meet the definition of irony or that they do not, which itself could be interpreted as ironic, to an observer aware of Alanis Morissette's subtext. [1], [1]

In tragedy, what is called "tragic irony" is a device for heightening the intensity of a dramatic situation. Its use is particularly characteristic of the drama of ancient Greece, owing to the familiarity of the spectators with the legends on which so many of the plays were based. In this form of irony the words and actions of the characters belie the real situation, which the spectators fully realize. It may take several forms: the character speaking may be conscious of the irony of his words while the rest of the actors may not; or he or she may be unconscious while the other actors share the knowledge with the spectators; or the spectators may alone realize the irony. Sophocles' Oedipus the King a classic example of tragic irony at its fullest and finest.

See also: jargon

External link

• An article from The Guardian about irony in today's world