What type of irony was used in this story?
IRONY
Definition: There are three types of irony: verbal, situational and dramatic.
Verbal irony occurs when a speaker's intention is the opposite of what he or she is
saying. For example, a character stepping out into a hurricane and saying, "What nice
weather we're having!"
Situational irony occurs when the actual result of a situation is totally different from
what you'd expect the result to be. Sitcoms often use situational irony. For example, a
family spends a lot of time and money planning an elaborate surprise birthday party for
their mother to show her how much they care. But it turns out, her birthday
is next month, and none of them knew the correct date. She ends up fuming that no
one cares enough to remember her birthday.
Dramatic irony occurs when the audience knows a key piece of information that
a character in a play, movie or novel does not. This is the type of irony that makes us
yell, "DON'T GO IN THERE!!" during a scary movie. Dramatic irony is huge in
Shakespeare's tragedies, most famously in Othello and Romeo and Juliet, both of which
we'll examine later.
Why Writers Use It:
Irony inverts our expectations. It can create the unexpected twist
at the end of a joke or a story that gets us laughing - or crying. Verbal irony tends to
be funny; situational irony can be funny or tragic; and dramatic irony is often tragic.