Situational Irony in Literature

This essay thoroughly examines the use of situational irony as a literary device in various works of literature. It analyzes examples from Shakespeare's plays (Romeo and Juliet, Othello, Julius Caesar, Macbeth, Antony and Cleopatra), Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, T.S. Eliot's The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, and children's literature such as the Harry Potter series, The Wizard of Oz, and The Land of Stories. The essay highlights how unexpected situations and plot twists, created through situational irony, enhance the dramatic effect and reader engagement. It also explores the ironic situations presented in short stories like Kate Chopin's The Story of an Hour and Guy de Maupassant's The Necklace. The essay concludes by emphasizing the widespread use of situational irony across different genres and its contribution to creating compelling narratives.

1
Situational Irony
Introduction
The situational irony is the occurrence of an unexpected situation in the plot. The stories are
often set up in a way where the readers can expect what to do. In such a situation something
different might happen and it creates a twist. It is called situational irony. In the literature, three
types of irony are used. The situational irony is one of them. The other two are dramatic and
verbal. In all cases, a discrepancy between reality and appearance is used. The verbal irony
indicates the discrepancy between reality and appearance in the words. In other words, verbal
irony happens when someone says different than their intended meaning. Dramatic irony is the
situation where the discrepancy occurs between the knowledge of the readers and that of the
characters. The situational irony, on the contrary, aims at creating a surprising effect for the
audience. It makes the story more appealing as the readers often prefer unexpected occurrences.
There are many instances of situational irony in the literature.
Works of Shakespeare
Situational Irony is one of the most widely used literary devices in the works of Shakespeare. In
this section, the use of this type of irony in different works is analyzed.
Romeo and Juliet: Romeo and Juliet is a play where this category of irony is used in several
scenes. Scene 1 of Act 2 indicates the situational irony when Mercutio and Benvolio believed
that Romeo loves Rosaline. So, they tried making Romeo respond to their call by referring to
her. In reality, Romeo was in love with Juliet. So, the references to Rosaline have not impacted
him anyway.
It is used in the scene when Romeo expects to die as he believes Juliet is dead. However, Juliet
was still alive although Romeo killed himself. It is one of the situations which indicate reflect
situational irony.
There is another situation which incorporates the situational irony is scene 2 of Act 5 when Friar
Lawrence expected to unite Romeo and Juliet. In this case, also, the letter of Lawrence was not
delivered to Romeo. As an effect, the plan failed and both of them killed themselves.
Othello: The evidence of situational irony are found in Othello also. Initial part of the play
indicates that Cassiois might be dead. In the end, the reader reveals that Cassiois is alive and gets
promoted. It is reflected in the conversation between Iago and Roderigo also. As evident from
the plot, Roderigo is acting as per the scheme of Iago unknowingly. This is a dramatic twist in
the plot and it is introduced using the situational irony. The activity of Emilia is another example
of situational irony. Emilia is portrayed as the friend of Desdemona but she was found to plot
against her. This is another remarkable twist in the plot.
Julius Caesar: Julius Caesar is another piece in which multiple dramatic moments are created
using the irony. The activity of Brutus is creating irony at various points. Brutus considers that
Caesar might abuse his power after being a king and would emerge as a tyrant. Brutus also

believes that the activities of Caesar would cause a civil war. Based on the belief, he decided to
assassin Caesar for saving Rome. The plot indicates that Brutus is comparing the future King to a
snake egg. The egg itself is considered as harmless but after hatching, it becomes poisonous.
Therefore, from the perspective of Brutus and his fellow conspirators, killing the king is the only
option to prevent the civil war. However, the actual scenario was different in the plot. After the
death of Caesar, the civil war started. It was exactly opposite of the expectations of the
conspirators and readers. The effect of assassinating Caesar was dramatic and twisted the plot.
The dream of Caesar's wife and the activity of Decius is another example. On the day of the
assassination, the wife tried to convince Caesar to stay at home because of her dream of stabbing
the statue, laughing of people and washing their hands in blood. On the morning, Caesar himself
was hesitant to leave the home due to the words of a psychic. Decius, on the contrary, was
plotting the murder of Caesar. He convinced him that the dream is a sign of kinghood and the
improvement of Rome. Decius also convinces Caesar that Senate is planning to crown him,
although the senators can change their mind if he does not leave home. Due to the ambitious
nature and faith in the friend, Caesar planned to attend the meeting. In the end, he was killed by
his friends instead of being crowned. It is another dramatic twist in the plot.
The handshake of Mark Antony with the murderers of Caesar is another instance of situational
irony. After the murder, Antony found that the murderers are standing over Caesar's body. As a
friend, Antony was expected to seek revenge. In reality, Antony was found doing handshakes
with the murderers and befriending them. It was not expected by the readers. The activities of
Antony also add a twist to the plot.
Macbeth: In Macbeth, the situational irony was presented by the actions of Macbeth. He firstly
killed Duncan for gaining power and the throne. At that time Macbeth considered that killing
Duncan would make him happy. In the later part of the play, he realized that he needs to kill
people to retain power. In the end, he started despising the people and his people also started
despising him.
Another example of irony is revealed in the actions of Lady Macbeth. Initially, she takes an
active role in the murder of Duncan. At that time she has not shown any sign of guilt or
hesitation. She was also found to criticizing Macbeth for his conscience and the weaknesses. She
was portrayed as a cold character. However, in the end, Lady Macbeth was found overwhelmed
with the guilt feeling. She also killed herself. The situational irony presents in the transformation
of her character.
Antony and Cleopatra: Antony and Cleopatra is another play where the irony is used effectively.
The initial course of actions in the play indicated that Antony would leave his throne. Later when
the actual time to give up the throne came, he became hesitant and it influenced the future
actions.
Work of Jane Austen
The situational irony is one of the most prominent attributes of the literary works of Jane Austen.
Pride and Prejudice is one such piece which contains plot twists. These twists are introduced
using irony.

Pride and Prejudice: One key instance of such irony is Darcy's love for Elizabeth. At the initial
stage of the plot, he described Darcy as tolerable but not adequately beautiful to convince him.
Later, he was attracted by her countenance and admitted the beauty. It is reflected in the quote
where Darcy is describing Elizabeth as one of the most beautiful women in his circle. The same
irony is indicated in the activities of Elizabeth also. In the first part of the plot, Elizabeth started
hating Mr Darcy. In the end, she married the same person. The irony is also reflected in her
response to the engagement of Charlotte and in her idea towards materialism. At a point,
Elizabeth indicates that she is not supposed to reject the first proposal and accept the second. As
the plot progresses, the readers come to know that she is doing the same thing. She rejected the
first proposal of Mr Darcy and then accepts when he proposes her again.
Another instance of irony is found in the character of Mr Collins. He advised Mr.Bennet to
forgive Lydia for the elopement. He requested Mr Bennet to do so on the grounds of Christianity.
On the flip, he also advised not to admit them within sight or in hearing. It indicates that Mr
Collins is ironic unconsciously. What he is suggesting, is not true forgiveness.
The irony is more vividly present in different characters than the situation. The plot indicates that
Elizabeth takes pride in herself. She also dislikes the ignorance of Jane about the realities.
However, the plot reveals that Elizabeth is blinded by her prejudices. The character of Elizabeth
has contradictory sides which are creating the irony. Darcy is another important character which
has showed irony. He considers himself a gentleman. However, his proposal for Elizabeth is not
like a gentleman. Wickham is another character which has a graceful experience but, he is a
villain. The Bingley Sisters used to hate others for their vulgarity but, they often showed vulgar
behaviour. Lady Catherine thinks herself as graceful but the plot reveals her haughty and self-
conceited nature. Mr Collins presents himself as a clergyman, but he shows the nature of self-
importance. In this way, the irony is presented by highlighting the contrasts.
Work of T.S. Eliot
The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock: It is a poem which includes irony in different forms. In
this poem, a patient is compared with the evening. The poet created the image of a beautiful
image and then, compared it with the difficult medical procedure. The ironic situation is created
by depicting the loss of natural beauty in the modern world.
Use in Children's Literature
The use of situational irony is quite common in children's stories. Here are some examples of this
tool—
Harry Potter Series: The plot is twisted different times in these books. However, the character of
Severus Snape is one of the most notable twists In the initial parts, Harry and his friends thought
that Snape is harmful to them. Several incidents during the initial parts of the plot reinforced
their beliefs. For instance, they found Snape keeping eye contact and it made them suspicious.
They also found Snape uttering some spell during the match. It also made them believe that
Snape is trying to harm Harry. It was revealed later that Snape was protecting Harry despite the
enmity with his father. The revelation twisted the plot dramatically.

In the initial stories of this series, the actions created an impression that Harry might kill, the evil
lord, Voldemort. However, at the end of the series, it became evident that Harry requires
allowing Voldemort to kill him so that his soul becomes mortal again. It was clear from the plot
that Harry should allow the evil lord to kill himself for the ultimate win. It was opposite of the
expectation of the audience. This twist in the plot created further complexities in the plot.
The Wizard of Oz: The story was written by L. Frank Baum and the entire story presents the
case of irony. In this story, the lead character, Dorothy takes help from the wizard to find the
way to home. Later she learns that she can find the home. The scarecrow in the story wanted to
be intelligent but in later phases of the story, he discovered to be a perfect genius. The
Woodsman considers not being able to love but in the end, he finds himself with a good heart.
The lion initially had the appearance of a coward. Later he emerged as an extremely courageous
character. At the end of the story, Dorothy also realizes that everything was a dream which gives
a nice twist to the plot.
The Land of Stories: Written by Chris Colfer, this is another book series which incorporates
situational irony to the significant level. As per the story, Alex and Connor, two lead characters,
used to dream about the fairytale worlds. They also used to believe that such worlds do not
stories. Later, they found that their grandmother is a part of the fairytale world and the world
exists.
The Green Eggs and Ham: The Green Eggs and Ham by Dr Seuss is a piece that presents
situational irony in a children's story. The narrator initially refuses to have green eggs and hams
because of his dislike. At the end of the story, the character tries the same food. The initial claim
indicated that he would be disgusted whereas he liked it.
The True Story of the Three Little Pigs: This is a classic fable where the irony is used through
the character of Big Bad Wolf. In this story, the wolf was presented negatively in the initial
phase. Later the reader comes to know that the wolf is actually not a villain and he only had a
cold. He also wanted to bake a cake, but the little pigs were not aware of it.
Use in Short Stories
Not only in novels, are the ironic situations found in the short stories as well. Here are a few
examples from the short stories—
The Story of an Hour: This story is written by Kate Chopin. The irony, in this case, occurs at the
end. Initially, as indicated by the story, the wife of Mr Brently realizes that her husband has died
in an accident. So, she starts planning to live a free life. In the end, her husband returns
unexpectedly and seeing him alive, she dies from shock. Here two ironic situations are presented.
Firstly, the death of Mr Brently is one of those situations. Throughout the story, the readers have
not expected to see him alive again. Next, the situation of his wife is also ironical as her death
was unexpected.
The Necklace: The entire plot is an example of situational irony. The leading character borrows
an expensive necklace from a wealthy friend and she loses it. To return it, Mathilda and her
husband go through a financial crisis. After several years, they meet the friend and learn that the
necklace was replaced earlier with an artificial one.

Conclusion
The current discussion indicates that the situational irony is used in all sorts of literary works
including novels, short stories, and poem. The purpose of using this literary device is making the
plots more dramatic. The readers found the plots more interesting due to such situations.