If my job is working at an unemployment benefits office and I get laid off because unemployment is so low, that is ironic. How about writing a song called “isn’t it ironic” with many examples of irony none of which are actually ironic? Is that ironic? Probably.* It seems ironic, but most don’t want to credit the writer/singer Alanis Morissette with having actually created irony. Winning the lottery and dying the next day is very good luck followed by very bad luck. Similarly, rain on your wedding day is bad luck. Washing your car and having it start to rain a bit later is just bad luck, not ironic. If while out-of-town on vacation I am seated at a restaurant at a table surprisingly adjacent to where my next door neighbor has just been seated, that is a coincidence and a surprise, not ironic.
Here are a few things that are not ironic and then a few things that are: And where irony does exist, sophisticated writing counts on the reader to recognize it.” Situational irony is most often confused with coincidences, bad luck, being hypocritical or mere incongruity. Not every coincidence, curiosity, oddity and paradox is an irony, even loosely. According to the New Oxford English Dictionary, “ Irony is a state of affairs or an event that seems deliberately contrary to what one expects and is often amusing as a result.” From the New York Times Editorial Guide : “Use of irony and ironically, to mean an incongruous turn of events, is trite. Situational Irony: This is the tough one. Sarcasm is intended to be biting or hurtful where the other types of verbal irony are not. Such as: “that is clear as mud,” or “as fun as a root canal,” or “I literally died,” or “I’d rather pull out my own teeth.” Verbal irony includes sarcasm among its flavors. Verbal Irony: Occurs when what is said is the opposite of the literal meaning of the words used. For example, in Romeo and Juliet the character appears to be dead to the characters, but the audience is aware she has merely taken a sleeping potion.
It is the third type that gets misused the most.ĭramatic Irony: This occurs in art such as plays, books and movies. It occurs when the audience is aware of something of which the characters in the story are not aware. Here is a summary of my research and then the best explanation I found, which comes from George Carlin.įirst thing to know: three types of irony are generally recognized – dramatic, verbal and situational. That’s a tough way to live – without ever using the word irony, so I undertaken research and have a better grasp of what irony means. I have made troubled peace with the word irony by never using it for fear of misusing it.