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Definition of Irony
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this seems like a loose definition... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how they actually are. If this... read full definition
Irony is a literary device or event in which how things seem to be is in fact very different from how... read full definition
Irony
Explanation and Analysis—Shoba’s Reveal:
While spending time together by candlelight due to a planned power outage on their street, Shoba suggests to Shukumar that they share secrets with each other in the dark. In an example of situational irony, Shukumar interprets this as a sign that Shoba wants to invest in rebuilding their relationship (in the wake of the loss of their stillborn child), when, really, she suggests the game in order to reveal to him on the final day of the power outage that she is planning to leave him.
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Explanation and Analysis—Childbearing Hips:
In one of the many short flashbacks in the story, the narrator describes a day that Shoba (then pregnant) and Shukumar went to an outdoor market in Boston to buy a large amount of food to store and freeze. This scene contains a subtle example of situational irony, as the narrator references Shoba’s “childbearing” hips:
Unlock with LitCharts A+[Shukumar] watched in disbelief as [Shoba] bought more food, trailing behind her with canvas bags as she pushed through the crowd. […] She didn’t mind being jostled, even when she was pregnant. She was tall, and broad-shouldered, with hips that her obstetrician assured her were made for childbearing.
Related Themes:
